Two Weeks
by crazygunbladergirl
Summary: between PoR and RD In which Naesala is very bored and decides to go to Gallia to flirt with Leanne for two weeks. Two. Long. Weeks. Mass chaos ensues. NaesalaxLeanne. Rated mostly for language. And Naesala's flirting. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

_Yes, this is a NaesalaxLeanne fanfic. Which means it's going to be FUN:D_

_Now presenting, another new and insane story from crazygunbladergirl..._

**Two Weeks**

Chapter 1 -- Reminiscing, In Which Naesala Gets An Idea

The raven king groaned as he stared out the window. The monotony of the winter season had once again hit Kilvas, for trading vessels seldom voyaged during the frigid winter months. In other words, there was no one for the ravens to steal from. Naesala sighed as he remembered recent events from the war between Crimea and Daein. He had not gotten as much money from the war as he would have liked, but at least there had been something to do.

_Maybe I should start a war for fun_, he thought. _Then again, that would cost a lot of money, which I'm just not willing to part with right now._

Another sigh accompanied his favorite memory of the war, when he had rescued Leanne from the tower in Crimea.

_I must say, that was the cleverest plan I have ever come up with,_ the raven king thought with a proud grin. Disguised as a soldier, he had convinced Izuka to leave the room, allowing for the perfect escape. _Of course, Leanne recognized me right away. I always was her favorite. And then we flew off into the sunset. The stupid Crimean army came all that way for nothing! Well, they did help distract the soldiers, which was nice._

Naesala chuckled as he remembered the look on Reyson's face when he found out that the raven king has rescued his sister. The beautiful Princess Leanne... Certainly a much more elegant princess than that whiney Elincia.

_That Ike fellow could have picked better. She couldn't fight well, and it's not like _I _ever need healing. She just kept fluttering about on that stupid horse, getting in my way._

Naesala switched his thoughts back to the graceful Leanne.

_When Tibarn barged in and ordered me to rescue Leanne, I thought he had fallen out of his tree. But to think that she was alive, all this time! All those times I flew over the Serenes forest and I could have just picked her up and taken her back to Kilvas without Reyson ever knowing until he was invited to the wedding! What fun that would have been!_

But now, Leanne was living in Gallia with Reyson and their father. And the beast tribe.

_I hate those damned cats. They smell really bad, and they always have fleas!_

The raven gasped at the thought of the graceful Leanne with fleas in her soft, cascading, golden hair.

_Why couldn't Reyson just decide to live in his damn forest, anyway?_

"Goodness, Nestling, how long do you plan to sit and stare out the window?"

Naesala turned to see Nealuchi toddering toward him. "There's nothing to do. I'm bored," the raven king complained.

"It's like this every winter, Nestling! You'll have to get used to it, I'm afraid."

"Hey, Nealuchi, how much money does it cost to start a war?"

The old crow stared at him in shock. "A war?! Don't tell me that you plan on severing our ties with Phoenicis!"

"I'm just bored," Naesala replied.

"Nestling, you can't start a war because you're bored! It isn't fair to the soliders involved! And what would happen if we lost?"

"Fine." Naesala sighed and continued to stare blankly out the window.

After a few minutes of silence, Nealuchi spoke up again. "I'm about ready to set off for Gallia. Is there any message you want to give to Prince Reyson or Princess Leanne?"

Naesala suddenly whipped around. "Nealuchi! We have to save Leanne! She's gonna get fleas!!"

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you're talking about," Nealuchi responded with confusion in his face. "The sanitary conditions in Castle Gallia are most admirable."

Another sigh, and the raven king was once again moping toward the window. "Fine. You go to Gallia and party with all your heron and cat friends while I sit here and try not to die of boredom."

Nealuchi thought for a moment. "Well, I suppose," he began, "you could come along with me and visit Prince Reyson and Princess Leanne..."

Naesala's eyes lit up. "Ooh! How long do you plan on staying?"

"Oh, just a few days..."

"Two weeks? Excellent! I shall go pack my things!"

Nealuchi grabbed Naesala's arm before he could rush out of the room. "W-wait, Nestling! You have to leave one of your retainers in charge while you're gone in case anything should happen!"

"Leave someone in charge? Why bother? NOTHING is happening here!" Naesala pulled his arm out of Nealuchi's grasp. "Let's go, you old crow!" Then he happily fluttered out of the room to go prepare for the trip.

Nealuchi sighed and shook his head. "Oh dear. King Caineghis may not be very pleased at having the nestling in his company for two weeks, but I suppose I have no choice. I just hope he isn't planning something foolish..."


	2. Chapter 2: Naesala's Arrival

_Wow, this is really popular already (compared to some of my other fics)! You guys rock! Thanks to all who reviewed! Sorry, this chapter is shorter than I thought it would be... The next chapter is huge. Don't worry.

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Chapter 2 -- Naesala's Arrival, In Which the Cats Are Very Unhappy

"She sells sea shells by the sea shore."

"S-see sells sell sore."

Ranulf sighed as Leanne continued to stare at him blankly.

_At first I thought that clueless look was cute, but now it's really getting on my nerves._ It wasn't her fault, though. Leanne could only speak in the old tongue, so she could barely understand those who spoke in the common tongue used throughout the rest of Tellius.

"Okay, Leanne, let's try again. She sells sea shells by the sea shore."

Reyson walked into the courtyard to join in the language lesson. "How is it going?" the heron prince asked.

"Reyson, how long did it take you to learn the common tongue?" Ranulf asked desperately.

"Oh, quite some time," replied Reyson. "It only took a few months for me to learn basic phrases, but I probably was not fluent until a couple years later."

"A couple years?! Aw man, this'll take forever!" Ranulf groaned.

Reyson smiled. "Well, Janaff was not exactly the greatest teacher, so you may have more luck."

Leanne sensed what was going on and giggled. Then she whispered something to her brother in the old tongue.

"What did she say?" the blue-haired cat asked.

"She said she'll try her best so that you can move on to training Lyre for combat."

Ranulf rolled his eyes. "Ugh, don't get me started on Lyre..."

An angry hiss interrupted them. Lethe appeared with clenched fists, her purple eyes glaring in irritation.

"What is it, Lethe? Another tiger make a pass at you?" Ranulf joked.

""Nealuchi's here," she muttered.

"Oh, how wonderful!" Reyson exclaimed with a smile.

"And he brought that damn king with him."

Reyson's smile dropped.

Ranulf groaned. "Well, Leanne, looks like we'll have to put our lessons on hold. King Kilvas came with Nealuchi to flirt with you."

Leanne seemed to brighten at the mention of her raven friends.

"I'm sure he has some other business in Gallia besides flirting with my sister," noted Reyson. "He probably wants to strike a deal with King Caineghis so he can get more money for one of his grand schemes."

Ranulf stood up. "Well, let's go greet them. At least Nealuchi's here. He's a decent fellow."

Meanwhile, the raven king and his ambassador were presenting themselves before King Caineghis and his shadow, Giffca. Giffca supressed a moan on seeing Naesala enter with Nealuchi.

"Ah, Caineghis! Giffca! What a pleasure to see you both again! It has been far too long!" Naesala exclaimed with a dramatic bow.

"Greetings from Kilvas," Nealuchi politely added. "I apologize for not informing you that King Naesala is accompanying me. I'm afraid it was a very last-minute decision."

"That is fine, Nealuchi. The more the merrier!" Caineghis declared as he rose from his seat.

_He's just being nice,_ thought the old crow.

"I am sure Prince Reyson and his sister will be overjoyed to see both of you," Caineghis continued. "Ah, here they are, now!"

Naesala turned as the herons entered the room behind Lethe and Ranulf.

"Reyson! Leanne!" the raven exclaimed. Then he turned to Lethe and Ranulf. "And...cats! How lovely to see you all again! I've come to visit for a while."

Lethe put her head in her hand at the fact that Naesala couldn't remember the names of either herself or Ranulf.

Reyson nodded to the raven king. "Naesala, what a pleasant surprise! I hope everything is well in Kilvas."

"Yes, everything is fine," replied Naesala. "It's winter, so you know, things are pretty slow."

"In other words, you just came here because you were bored."

"Oh, of course not! I merely wished to see my two beloved friends from Serenes!"

Ranulf leaned over to Nealuchi and whispered, "He was just bored, wasn't he?"

"Pretty much," the ambassador answered.

Naesala, meanwhile, had turned to the heron princess. "Of course, I must properly greet the lovely lady Leanne!" He bent over and took her hand, gently kissing it.

"Naesala," Leanne happily exclaimed.

Ranulf quickly intervened before Reyson could slap the crow on the back of the head. "How about I show you two sirs to your rooms?" he offered.

"Yes, that would be lovely," Nealuchi responded.

"Oh, by the way," Ranulf asked, "how long to you plan on staying in Gallia?"

"Only a few d--"

"Two weeks!" Naesala proudly proclaimed, interrupting Nealuchi.

"Oh, goddess..." whispered Lethe.

Ranulf sighed and showed the ravens out of the hall.

"Does he not have anything else to do?" Giffca asked after they had left.

"During the winter months there are very few trading vessels that dare brave the seas," Reyson explained. "To answer your question, there probably is something he _could_ be doing, but he doesn't feel like doing it."

Leanne giggled and tugged on her brother's sleeve.

"May we take our leave, Highness?" asked Reyson in a respectful tone. "Leanne is anxious to visit with our friends from Kilvas."

"Yes, you may leave," Caineghis declared with a smile. Then he added, "Do not worry, Reyson. I will have Giffca keep an eye on him."

"Thank you, your majesty." With that, Reyson followed Leanne back out to the courtyard.

Lethe sighed. "This will be a very long two weeks..."


	3. Chapter 3: Jewelry and Fish

_Sorry for the delay. I had way too much fun writing this chapter. :D Hope you all enjoy!

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Chapter 3 -- Jewelry and Fish, In Which Naesala Makes His First Move 

Naesala jumped at the sound of someone knocking on the door. He had been setting up various romantic scenarios with Leanne in his mind.

"That must be Leanne! She seemed to be just dying to see me again! I better open up my jacket even more to maximize my sexiness." He quickly fiddled with his hair and fixed up his clothing. Then he leaned against the side of the door frame and opened to door.

"Hey there, cutie--" Naesala's voice trailed off as he realized that Ranulf was standing there.

"What the hell is your problem?" the blue cat asked as he stared at the awkward raven.

"Ah, j-just joking! Ha ha, you should have seen your face!" Naesala exclaimed with a nervous giggle. _Good cover up..._

"Whatever. Did you change clothes?" Ranulf asked as he scanned the raven king over. Indeed, Naesala was now wearing a different, yet similarly tight, black outfit.

"The other one got dirty on the flight here," Naesala explained. Then he added, "Good thing I haven't seen any fleas here so far."

"Fleas? What kind of place do you think this is?" Ranulf sighed. "Anyway, I came to tell you that Reyson and Leanne are in the courtyard."

"Oh, how excellent!" Naesala flew past Ranulf and found his way to the courtyard. The generally warm climate in Gallia allowed for flowers to grow during the winter, so the courtyard was blooming with colorful blossoms of blue, red, purple, and pink. Naesala instantly spotted Leanne under a cherry tree, humming as she examined a flower petal.

_Ooh, how wonderful for me!_ thought Naesala. _She's already alone!_

He casually walked over to her. "Leanne! How has everything been in Gallia?"

She looked up and happily began chattering in the old tongue.

"Really? You actually like it here?" _Note to self: plant an extravagant garden in Kilvas when I get back._ "You know, we have beautiful flora like this in Kilvas."

Leanne smiled and asked how things were in Kilvas.

"Oh, we have such an immense profit right now! In fact, we have quite a bit of jewelry lying about..." He pulled a sparkling emerald necklace out of his pocket. "I thought you might like this, Leanne."

Her eyes lit up.

_Green always was her favorite color. Score one for me!_ "Would you like me to put this on you?" he asked.

She eagerly nodded. Naesala reached behind her neck to clasp the necklace together. Then he saw his opportunity.

_Such a romantic setting! I should kiss her!_

He leaned over and gently held her chin. "Leanne," he whispered. Then he slowly moved forward, until...

"Naesala! How is everything in Kilvas?"

_Shit._ Naesala quickly backed away from Leanne before Reyson could see what they were about to do. "The war certainly did wonders for our economy!" the raven king exclaimed. "Everything was going fine until the slow season started."

Reyson sighed. "Does anything go on in Kilvas that _doesn't_ involve money?" Then he noticed Leanne's new necklace. "Leanne, where did you get that?"

The heron princess smiled and pointed at Naesala.

"Oh, do you want one, too, Reyson?" Naesala asked with a smirk.

"No thanks," he replied. "You probably stole it, anyway."

"So?"

Reyson shook his head. "Anyway, we've been teaching Leanne how to speak in the new tongue."

"Really?" Naesala perked up. "I remember when Tibarn and Janaff tried teaching you, Reyson!"

"Yes. You tried to teach me all the beorc swear words. I remember well, Naesala."

"That was so funny! The look on Tibarn's face was priceless! You just came up to him so innocently and shouted, 'Tibarn is a motherfu--'"

"You failed to tell me what that meant!" Reyson interrupted in embarrassment. "I think that was part of the reason why they decided to have me live in Phoenicis instead of Kilvas. They probably figured out that it was all your doing."

"They're just no fun..." Naesala sighed as he began to concoct another plan in his mind.

"I know that look!" Reyson shouted. "Don't even _think_ of teaching my sister beorc swears!"

Naesala smiled innocently. "Oh, Reyson, I would _never_ do that!"

Leanne, meanwhile, had been watching the whole conversation with amusement. She secretly loved to watch her brother and his friend argue back and forth.

It was soon time for dinner, and Caineghis had invited the ravens to dine with him. Naesala was still looking for another opportunity to find Leanne alone. However, the dining hall of Castle Gallia was quite large, for Caineghis loved to entertain. Everyone was gathered around the large table in the center of the room.

_Ugh, deer… I hate deer_, Naesala thought disgustedly as the chef served his plate. He looked over to Leanne, who had a salad with bits of fish in it. _I'd rather eat leaves than this filth!_

He noticed that Nealuchi was calmly eating his deer.

"This is delicious!" the old raven exclaimed. "King Caineghis has such an excellent cook, doesn't he?"

"Sure…" Naesala painfully swallowed a bite of the meat. _What's wrong with nice, scrumptious mice?_

"How do you like your fish, Leanne?" Reyson was asking his sister. Leanne grinned and nodded.

_If only it was a few more weeks old... Rotten deer is bad, but it's better than fresh... Ugh..._

"Is that fish yummy?" Naesala asked Leanne. "Is it just how you like it?"

Leanne nodded. "Very good!" Then she pointed to his dish asked, "Is good?"

Naesala was finding it difficult to keep up his diplomacy. "It's... different from what I'm used to."

"Try?" She smiled and offered him a bit of fish on her fork.

"Of course!" But instead of taking the fork, he leaned over and ate right off of it. _Oh, so good! So much better! Not to mention that Leanne is feeding me. It's a dream come true!_ "It's delicious! Could I... possibly have another bite?"

Leanne giggled and began to fork another piece of fish.

"Leanne, don't give him all your food. Make him eat his, too," Reyson groaned.

"She offered it," Naesala retorted with a sly grin. "I think it's kind of her to do so."

Reyson sighed and shook his head. Meanwhile, Leanne was having trouble getting the piece of fish onto her fork.

"Not sticking," she mumbled sadly.

"Just use your fingers then," Naesala suggested. "I don't mind."

Reyson glared at him suspiciously as Leanne picked up the fish with her fingers and handed it to the raven. Naesala leaned over and once again ate right out of her hand.

"So... delicious..." he whispered. Then he began softly kissing her fingers until...

WHACK!

"Nestling, please, not during dinner," Nealuchi muttered.

Naesala turned around and rubbed the back of his head. "That hurt! Nealuchi, you're so mean!"

Ranulf finally burst out laughing. "You guys are so funny!"

Naesala glared at him and shoved a piece of deer into his mouth. _Foiled by my own caretaker!_

After dinner they all went off to their separate rooms to digest the massive amount of food they had just eaten. Except for Naesala, since he didn't really eat much of the deer. As he turned the corner to approach his room, he heard Reyson shout his name.

"Naesala! I need to talk to you for a second!"

Naesala turned around as Reyson came up to him. "Yes?"

Reyson glared at him. "I just want to let you know that I don't like the way you flirt with my sister! That... thing... during dinner was too far!"

Naesala smirked. "It was just a bit of fun! Reyson, even Ranulf was laughing. Why can't you just play along?"

"Ranulf was laughing at you because you whine like a little fledging. I see why Nealuchi still calls you 'Nestling.'"

Naesala rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

"Naesala, just promise me you'll keep your hands off of Leanne! I don't want anything to happen to her!"

The raven king grinned. "I guess I can keep my hands off of her. But I don't know how well I'll be able to keep the rest of me off of her."

Reyson sighed. "You're impossible sometimes, you know that? Can't you just behave yourself for once?" Then he looked straight into Naesala's eyes. "Tell me, why, exactly, did you come here?"

"Because I was bored. Besides, I haven't seen you all in so long!" Naesala stretched his wings. "Now, if you will excuse me, I need to take a long bath. All this dirt is bad for my wings."

Reyson shook his head. "All right. But I don't want you doing anything to hurt Leanne, got it?"

"I would never hurt Leanne! Or you, for that matter."

"I hope so."

Naesala smiled and turned toward the bathroom. _Hopefully this place is laden with mice so I can catch myself a tasty snack!_


	4. Chapter 4: Gardens

_For some reason I imagine Leanne having a French accent... So that's why she sorta has one here lol. But anyways, thanks for the mass of reviews! You guys are awesome!

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Chapter 4 -- Gardens, In Which Naesala Teaches Leanne How to Say "I Love You" 

Naesala slowly woke up and rolled out of bed. The raven king had difficulty falling asleep without the familiar sound of the ocean waves crashing against the cliffs. By the time he had painstakingly gotten dressed and groomed, it was already close to noon. However, he was delighted to find Leanne walking by herself through the courtyard.

"Ah, Leanne, what a wonderful morning this is!" he exclaimed as he approached her.

She giggled and asked him if he had slept well.

He honestly replied, "It is hard to sleep in such an unusual place. How do you manage it?"

She told him that the forests in Gallia were similar to those of Serenes, so it was like home.

_Note to self: Add a forest in the aforementioned garden._ Naesala then noticed that Leanne was carrying a book. "How are your language lessons going?"

She sighed. "It... hard," she told him. She wished she could at least say something right.

"Oh, Leanne! Don't get discouraged! Learning a new language is hard work!" Naesala took her hand. "I can help you learn, if you want."

She beamed at the proposal and wanted to start right away.

"All right, let's go over under that tree."

The weather was once again beautiful, and Naesala wished to set the right mood. They sat down under the cherry tree and began the lesson. At first, Naesala tried teaching her normal phrases.

"When someone helps you or gives you something, you say 'Thank you.' Unless, of course, you're royalty. Then you can say whatever you want, like, 'Get lost, filthy underling!'"

Leanne looked at him curiously. "Get... l-loset... fil-fee...un-der-ling."

"Aha! Now we're getting somewhere! Try saying, 'Reyson is a pretty little princess!'"

"Reyson... is... a... pret-ty... little... p-princess."

Naesala grinned. "Say that to your brother the next time you see him."

Leanne nodded and giggled, for she had no idea what that phrase meant.

"Okay, say, 'The raven king is the sexiest laguz alive!'"

"Ze... raven k-king... is... ze sek-sieset... laguz... alife..."

_Oh yes he is!_ thought Naesala. _And the cleverest._

Leanne giggled and asked him what all of that meant.

"Uh... well, that's not important right now! First let's get the basic pronunciations down."

"Ze raven king is ze sexiest laguz alife."

"Excellent. See, it's not that bad once you get that hang of it!"

Leanne quickly grabbed Naesala's shoulder and asked him how one would express affection for something. The sexy raven king found himself blushing.

"W-well, there are a couple of things you could say. Like, if you were showing affection for this tree, you would say, 'I like it.'"

"I like it."

Naesala continued. "If you were talking about something you really like with all of your heart, especially a person, you would say, 'I...'" He sighed. "'I love you.'"

Leanne replayed the phrase in her mind. "I luf... I luf..."

"Naesala! What are you doing?!" Reyson burst through the bushes. "You promised me you wouldn't teach her any dirty words!"

Naesala regained his usual smirk. "No I didn't. Besides, I didn't teach her anything _too_ dirty. Tell him, Leanne!"

Leanne smiled. "Reyson is a pretty little princess."

Reyson groaned. "Come here, Leanne. I'll teach you some phrases that are actually useful."

"Ze raven king is ze sexiest laguz alife."

"Yes, I'm sure he thinks so," Reyson replied while glaring at Naesala. "Let's go visit Father."

Leanne got up and joined her brother. Then she turned to Naesala and giggled, "Get lost, filfy underling!"

"Anytime, Leanne!" the raven casually replied. Then the herons left. _Damn, I was really close that time! Imagine the look on Reyson's face if he heard Leanne say she loved me!_ Naesala sighed. _Well, I have two weeks. Plenty of time._ He decided to go talk to Nealuchi about his plans for making Kilvas more Leanne-friendly. He found the old raven chatting with Ranulf in the castle.

"Ah, Nealuchi, there you are! I have to discuss something with you."

Nealuchi turned to him in fear. "_Now_ what have you concocted, Nestling?"

Ranulf began laughing. "You guys are so funny! He still calls you 'Nestling'! You must be even less mature than I thought you were!"

Naesala sighed. "Yes, well, at least I don't have fleas!"

"Fleas?! Since when have I had fleas?"

"Look, I need to talk to Nealuchi, so leave us, cat!"

"It's Ranulf! Not cat!" Ranulf muttered. Then he stormed off.

"You know, Nestling, you should improve your methods of foreign diplomacy," Nealuchi warned Naesala. "I'm surprised that none of the other laguz nations have gotten angry enough to declare war on Kilvas!"

"It's all in good fun," Naesala casually replied. "Now, Nealuchi, I need you to do something for me."

"What is it?"

The raven king grinned. "We are going to build a giant garden in Kilvas, complete with a forest in the center!"

Nealuchi stared at him in shock. "B-but Nestling! Kilvas is made up of rocky cliffs! Where will we find land for a garden?"

"We'll find something! There has to be enough land somewhere! If not then I guess we'll just have to buy some!"

The old crow scratched his head. "Why, exactly, are you suddenly wanting a large garden in Kilvas? I never did think of you to be one to have an affinity for flowers."

Naesala sighed. "Of course I don't like flowers! What, did you think the garden was for me?"

"Well, I just assumed that--"

"You know what they say about people who assume, Nealuchi. This garden will be for my heron friends!"

"Prince Reyson and Princess Leanne? Goodness, this is sudden!" Nealuchi exclaimed.

Naesala smirked. "The herons rarely visit us anymore, so we need something that would cause them to want to stay in Kilvas! It isn't fair that Leanne has to live here with all these fleas!"

Nealuchi gave him a puzzled look. "Nestling, I've never seen any fleas here. Why are you so suddenly concerned about Princess Leanne having them?" Then the old crow finally caught on. "I see! You're building the garden for Princess Leanne to get her to stay in Kilvas!"

"That's what I've been saying, you old--"

"You're in love with Princess Leanne!"

Naesala stopped and turned a bright tomato-red. "I AM NOT!" he shouted.

"Aww, Nestling, you look so cute when you're embarrassed." Nealuchi was secretly enjoying the chance to tease his king.

"Naesala can get embarrassed? What's he embarrassed about?" Reyson came around the corner of the hallway.

"N-nothing!" the raven king protested. Nealuchi, however, could hardly contain his laughter.

"Hm, now I'm curious!" Reyson grinned. "I'll have to get Nealuchi to tell me, I suppose."

"He won't tell because there's nothing that's embarrassing me!" Naesala quickly regained his mischievous composure. "Of course, I can tell _plenty_ of embarrassing stories about Reyson!"

Reyson's smile dropped. "No, you won't!"

Ranulf soon appeared from around the corner. "Hey, are you done yet? I wanna finish talking to Nealuchi!"

Naesala turned to the blue cat. "What? Oh, sure. Nealuchi!" he shouted as he looked to his ambassador. "I want you to get started on the project right away!"

"I'm sure you do Nestling," Nealuchi replied with a grin. "I'm sure you do."


	5. Chapter 5: Hunting

_I'm just assuming that since the beast tribe likes to hunt that they would have like competitive hunts. Like in the Middle Ages or something. :D More fun coming up. Thanks for the reviews! You guys are the best:D

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Chapter 5 -- Hunting, In Which Giffca Scares the Crap out of Naesala 

The raven king slowly walked down the hallway of Castle Gallia, making sure to pause at every reflective surface he found to admire himself.

_I am so sexy,_ he thought as he ran a hand through his hair. _I am the king of sexy!_ Then he sighed. _But they're making this sexy raven go out into those nasty tangled forests to go hunting. Honestly, do they realize what care I put into fixing my hair? Now I have to worry about twigs getting caught in my sexy locks, not to mention those damned fleas..._

Suddenly, he stopped and glanced around. No one else was in the hallway at the moment, but he felt as though someone was watching him.

_Maybe Leanne is secretly following me. She probably can't get enough of my sexiness._

Naesala finally reached the entrance of the castle, where Ranulf, Lethe, Skrimir, Caineghis, and Nealuchi were already waiting.

"Good, Naesala is here," Caineghis remarked. "Now we just need Giffca, and then the whole party will be here!"

Lethe was especially unhappy today, for she hated Naesala more than the rest of the Gallians combined. _He's like a human, only with wings,_ she thought as he glanced in a glass vase to check his hair.

The black lion soon arrived, completing the hunting party.

"All right, everyone!" Caineghis shouted to get everyone's attention. "These are the rules for the hunt. No using beorc weapons."

"Like we would," Lethe muttered.

"I'll use brute force! Brute force always works!" Skrimir shouted. He was even more pumped up today than usual because it was a competitive hunt.

"Okay, Skrimir, that's nice." Caineghis shook his head in embarrassment at his nephew and continued. "Try to leave as much of the prey intact. A good, hard bite on the back of the neck should suffice. Finally, you must stay within the parameters established earlier. We don't want to get in the way of a traveler. Is that clear?"

Everyone nodded.

"Excellent!" Caineghis smiled. "You have from now until sundown. At that point, everyone gathers back to this area with their prey, which I will evaluate. Whoever makes the best catch wins 100,000 gold in laguz currency."

Naesala's eyes boggled.

"The best of luck to you all! The hunt starts now!"

The members of the beast tribe charged out of the castle, while Naesala and Nealuchi soared overhead.

_That prize sure sounds nice, _the raven king thought, _but we ravens are at such a disadvantage! We don't hunt; we _scavenge_. Besides, the cats can go after big game like deer. Ugh, deer... Mice are so much more scrumptious._

Naesala figured that the only way he could win this was by his usual fall-back method: cheating.

"I'll just find something that's been freshly killed and make it look like _I_ killed it!" He grinned with satisfaction at his brilliant plan and flew off in search of a fresh carcass.

A few minutes later he spotted a dying deer. He swooped down to kill it, but then he stopped short when he realized just how big it was.

"Stop flailing around! I've gotta find that artery before it kills me!"

Figuring that raven form would be necessary, he transformed and clamped onto the deer's neck. Suddenly, the deer kicked him in the gut, causing him to let go of its neck.

"Ugh, this wasn't worth it..." he groaned.

He decided to use Vortex to hold the deer back. Then he once again grabbed its neck with his talons and broke its neck.

"Phew, that was hard work," he sighed as he transformed back into his humanoid form. He examined the deer and realized that it had escaped from one of the other hunters, for it had a bite mark at another part of its neck.

"Hah. Cheating always works best!" the raven exclaimed.

A loud roar interrupted his brief moment of triumph.

_Probably the original predator of this deer. I should get out of here._

He soon discovered the major flaw in his plan. As he tried to pick up the deer, he found that it was too heavy to fly away with. The sound of the hunter was getting closer.

_Damn it, how do they expect ravens to do these stupid beast tribe hunts, anyway?_

Naesala found no other alternative than to drag the deer through the forest. He grabbed its hind legs and pulled it away from the path toward a nearby stream so he could wash off.

_I should wash off the scent from the deer, too. The cats have a strong sense of smell..._

As he was finishing with the deer he heard Skrimir's voice in the distance, shouting, "That damn deer should be dead by now! Where the hell did it go? Did someone take my deer?"

The raven king chuckled quietly and continued to pulling the deer away. Soon he was far out of Skrimir's path, so he put the deer down and stopped to rest. Then he realized another major problem.

"Where the hell am I?"

He had been so concerned in getting away from Skrimir that he had lost his bearings. He was about to fly out of the forest to look for the castle when he heard a familiar sound.

_That sounds like Leanne singing! What's she doing out here?_ He pulled the deer with him toward the sound of the voice. Sure enough, Leanne was sitting on a rock, humming sweetly. She was surprised to see Naesala popping into the clearing with twigs in his hair, dragging a dead deer behind him.

"Naesala?"

"Well, I certainly wasn't expecting to see you here, Leanne! What are you doing here in the middle of a hunt?"

She pointed to the trees. "I like," she explained. Then she pointed to herself. "Lost."

"Oh, I see. You came out here to enjoy the sights and sounds of the forest and in the process got yourself lost. Join the club."

"Naesala... lost?" she asked.

"So it would seem," he replied as he plopped down next to her. "I've been dragging that stupid deer with me because it's going to win me the hunt! That is, if I get back to the castle before sundown." Then a sudden realization came to him.

_Here I am, in the middle of the forest with Leanne, who is also lost. And we are ALONE!_ Naesala grinned. He now had the perfect opportunity.

"Leanne, how about we pass the time with some _lessons_?" He moved closer to her.

She smiled and explained, "Reyson say... I not... learn... l-lessons... from Naesala."

Naesala laughed. "That doesn't surprise me. But, you know, Reyson's not around. Besides, we never finished going over affectionate phrases!" He put a hand under her chin. "Remember how to say it? 'I love you.'"

"I luf..."

Naesala ran his hand through her long, golden hair.

"I luf..."

"Go on. You've got it."

"I luf ooh."

"Say it again. 'I love you.'" He leaned toward her.

"I love..."

He was so close to her face that he could feel her breath...

"RrrrAWRR!!"

A black lion jumped out from the bushes right behind Leanne.

"AHHHHH!!!"

Naesala fell backward off the rock and stared in horror at the lion. Leanne seemed completely calm and only smiled.

"Giffca," she explained to the terrified raven.

"G-Giffca?"

Sure enough, the lion transformed into Caineghis' shadow. "Ah, I thought I smelled something unusual," Giffca casually remarked. "What are you doing in the woods, Princess Leanne?"

She pointed to Naesala and then to herself. "Lost."

"I see." Then Giffca turned to Naesala, who still looked as though he was about to faint. "How can you get lost, King Kilvas? Couldn't you just fly back to the castle?"

"D-deer," Naesala stammered. "Hard to carry... Can't fly..." Then he passed out.

"Idiot," Giffca muttered. "Princess, if you do not mind, will you take King Kilvas while I carry his deer?"

Leanne nodded. She fanned Naesala with a leaf until he came to. He quicky regained his composure.

"Giffca! Don't go around scaring people like that! I almost crapped myself!"

The lion calmly turned to him and replied, "I now have an excellent story to share with the White Prince."

"WHAT?!" Naesala rushed over to Giffca and gave him a friendly pat on the back. "Now, Giffca, how about we just keep this little incident between ourselves, eh? We're good pals, right?"

Giffca only laughed and walked away.

_Crap. I was so close this time!_ Naesala sighed and followed Leanne and Giffca back to the castle. They got back just before sundown. Skrimir had also just arrived, but everyone else had returned long ago.

"Excellent, our last two hunters have returned!" Caineghis smiled. "And we even found Princess Leanne! Good, Prince Reyson was getting worried."

Leanne thanked Giffca for helping her and then bounded off to find Reyson. Skrimir's eyes widened as Giffca put Naesala's deer down.

"That's my deer!" he shouted. "What the hell are you doing with my deer?!"

Naesala quickly put on a graceful facade. "_Your_ deer? Why, Sir Cat, I'm afraid you are mistaken. _I_ killed this deer with my own talons!" While there was actually some truth in this, Skrimir was not convinced.

"I was looking all over for that deer, and then I ran out of time so I had to kill a measley boar! You've got my deer there, you filthy raven!" He was about to pounce on him, but Caineghis quickly intervened.

"Skrimir, it does not matter. Calm down. I have already decided on the winner."

Skrimir stopped and stared at his uncle with anticipation.

Caineghis then cleared his throat. "The winner of the hunt is... Nealuchi, for his superb bison!"

"What the hell?!" Naesala stared at the old crow, who was smiling humbly. "How the hell did you catch a bison?!"

"Skill and patience, Nestling," Nealuchi replied.

"Well, you better let me have some of that money!" the raven king warned.

"Why should I? I earned it. You still have a lot to learn, Nestling!"

Caineghis handed Nealuchi a large bag of gold. "Congratulations!"

"Thank you, your majesty. I'll see to it that it is spent wisely." Then he winked at Naesala, who groaned.

_Stupid old crow..._


	6. Chapter 6: Sardines

_I'm just going to assume that everyone knows how to play Sardines. If you don't then just PM me and I'll explain it. :) It's a very fun/awkward game!

* * *

_

Chapter 6 -- Sardines, In Which Naesala, Leanne, and Reyson Get Trapped in a Closet 

Naesala sat lazily in his bed, moping. It was already six days into his trip, and so far he had failed in convincing Leanne to return with him to Kilvas. To make matters worse, his caretaker was currently 100,000 coins richer than himself.

_I need to spend more time with Reyson to ease his suspicions,_ Naesala thought. _Of course, Leanne will go along. I wonder how I could..._

Then the perfect plan came to him.

_We need to play a game! And not just some beast tribe hunt. We should play a _real_ game, like... Sardines!_

It was ingenious. Naesala hopped out of bed and rushed out to the courtyard, where Reyson was preening his wings in his heron form.

"Reyson! Change back! I have a great idea!"

The heron groaned (however herons groan) and transformed back into Reyson. "This better be good."

Naesala grinned. "Remember when we organized that huge game of Sardines back in Phoenicis?"

"Oh no..." Reyson rolled his eyes.

"Let's have a big game of Sardines here in Gallia!"

"Naesala, I'm sure we'll get in someone's way if a large group of laguz is crammed in a closet."

"It doesn't have to be a lot of players. Just like maybe you, me, and Leanne!"

"Three? You have to have like six before the game gets any fun," Reyson reminded him. "What about Nealuchi?"

"Nealuchi hates Sardines. You know that. He can't squeeze into tight spaces anymore because he's so old."

Ranulf popped out from behind a tree. "Sardines? Ohmigosh I LOVE Sardines! I'll play!"

Reyson nodded. "Okay, so now we have four. You don't think Lethe would like it, would she?"

Ranulf laughed. "No, but Lyre would! I'll go get her!" The blue cat eagerly ran off.

_Crap,_ Naesala thought. _I don't want to squeeze into any small places with that flea-ridden cat! Especially if Lethe's sister is playing..._

Ranulf soon reappeared with Lyre and Leanne. "Okay, there are five of us. Who else should play?"

"Mordecai might want to play!" Lyre suggested.

Naesala groaned. The thought of being squished into a closet with a giant blue tiger was not appealing.

Pretty soon, Mordecai had joined the group.

"Okay, I think six is enough!" Naesala exclaimed. _I'm going to be ravaged with fleas..._

"Everyone knows how to play, right?" Reyson asked.

The others nodded.

"Good. You can hide anywhere in the castle, except in people's bedrooms, the kitchen, or the throne room. We don't want to get in anyone's way." Reyson glanced at Naesala. "One person hides while the rest of us stay here and count. You'll have one minute to hide. Now, who's going first?"

Lyre happily volunteered. The rest of the group began counting while she bounded off to find a good hiding place.

_I bet she'll pick a really small spot,_ Naesala thought. _This would have been more fun with the hawks. I should have thought this through better! But hopefully I'll end up squeezed close to Leanne._

Soon they were off searching for the young cat. Several minutes passed as the others wandered throughout the castle. Naesala was on the second floor near the medic wing when he heard a sneeze. He followed the sound to an empty medic room. He then glanced under the bed and saw Mordecai's tail sticking out.

_Oh crap... How the hell am I supposed to fit under a bed?_

Naesala crawled under the bed, keeping his wings as flat as possible.

"Hey, Naesala! Your foot's gonna kick my face!" Lyre was scrunched up against the wall, with Mordecai huddled as low to the ground as possible. Naesala was lying flat on the ground; it was the only way his wings would fit.

_This game was easier when I was smaller..._

Soon, Ranulf had discovered them, but there was no more floor space under the bed.

"Naesala, I have to lie on top of you!" he whispered.

"No. Go lay on Lyre."

"There's no room there! I'm coming in!"

Naesala felt Ranulf's elbow jam into his back. "Damn, you cats are heavy..."

"Don't move your wing! I've got feathers in my mouth!"

"Shh, you two!" Lyre whispered. "Someone's coming!"

Naesala could see Reyson's feet from under the bed.

"Wow... there's not much room under there..." Reyson crouched down and squeezed in front of Naesala as much as he could.

"Ugh, now I've got more feathers in my face!" Ranulf complained.

"Wait, Leanne's the only one missing, right?" Lyre asked.

"Leanne could be lost," Mordecai mumbled.

"Reyson, why'd you split up with her?" Naesala moaned. "It's getting hard to breathe under this flea-ridden cat!"

"Shut up about the fleas!"

"Under... bed?"

Everyone stopped and realized that Leanne had found them.

"Fit... hard," she remarked with a giggle.

"Well, that's everyone! Leanne's it since she was last!" Ranulf exclaimed as he rolled off of Naesala.

"Oh, thank Ashera I can breathe again!" the raven gasped.

Once again they gathered in the courtyard while Leanne hid. Naesala's goal was to find her first to ensure that he would be snuggled up against her. They finished counting and sped off to find Leanne.

_She would have picked a bigger spot, since her wings get in the way,_ Naesala thought. _A closet or pantry is the perfect place._

He looked in every closet until he spotted a closet with a partially closed door. Upon stepping in he saw Leanne hiding in the back.

"Found me," she whispered.

_Oh, yes I did!_ Naesala gently pulled the door closed, but not completely shut. "I guess it's just the two of us now," he whispered.

Only a small sliver of light could get through the darkened room, but it was enough that he could make his way over to Leanne.

"Dark," she whispered.

"Are you scared of the dark?"

"Little."

He gently grabbed her hand. "Leanne, remember when I saved you from the tower?"

"Yes." She squeezed his hand tighter.

"You were scared then, weren't you?"

She nodded.

"Well, you don't have to be scared anymore. I'm here."

"Naesala..."

"Leanne, why don't you visit Kilvas sometime? The sea is very pretty."

Suddenly, the door opened wide, sending a strong beam of light into the closet.

"Ah, Reyson! Good thing this hiding space is bigger, eh?" Naesala slipped his hand out of Leanne's.

Reyson stepped into the closet. "Good spot, Leanne! Much nicer on the wings!"

He quickly began to close the door.

"Wait, Reyson, not all the--"

The latched clicked softly.

"Not all the what?"

"It's pitch dark in here! At least leave it open a little bit!"

"Yeah, but the only reason I knew Leanne was hiding here was because the door was slightly open."

"R-Reyson..." Leanne whimpered and asked her brother to open the door.

"Aw, Leanne, I forgot you were afraid of the dark. Okay, I'll open it a little..."

Naesala heard the sound of a clicking latch.

"It's not opening..."

"Let me try." The raven felt his way over to the door and tried it. Sure enough, it was locked. "Reyson, you idiot! You never close the door behind you in a closet!"

"In Serenes we don't have closets."

"Oh please, you had a closet at Phoenicis!"

"That doesn't mean I went all the way inside of it!"

"Reyson? Naesala?"

The two guys could hear Leanne start to sniffle.

"I'm here, Leanne!" Reyson called. "Where are you?"

"She's at the back of the closet," Naesala answered.

They stumbled around, trying to find the heron princess in the dark.

"Ugh, we birds have such terrible night vision, don't we?" Naesala joked. He was slowly walking around with his hands out in front of him, trying to feel for the wall. Suddenly, his hands grabbed something different. "What is this? It's really soft..."

He squeezed the two soft areas in his hands, which caused Leanne to sqeak in surprise. And then the realization hit him.

"Uh, Reyson, I f-found Leanne," he squeaked.

"Oh, good! I'm coming, Leanne!"

"Naesala?" Leanne whispered. She had grabbed his arms to confirm that it was the raven king who was now touching her chest.

"Y-yeah, that's me," he replied. _Oh my gosh, if Reyson saw this right now, he would kill me..._ However, he was finding it difficult to remove his hands from Leanne's chest.

"Is that you, Naesala?"

Something pushed into Naesala's back, causing him to fall over on top of Leanne.

_What the hell? That fool is just begging for me to make love to his sister! Not that I necessarily mind, but this is not the place for..._

"Ow, sorry. I tripped on something," said Reyson's voice. "Leanne?"

Naesala could feel Leanne's breath on his face. Suddenly, he thought he felt her lips on his cheek.

"Leanne..."

"Whose wing is this?" Reyson was tugging on Naesala's wing.

_If only Reyson wasn't here right now!_

A flood of light burst into the closet, following a mighty crash.

"Mordecai got the door open," the blue tiger humbly remarked.

Naesala's eyes slowly adjusted to the light as he noticed Mordecai, Ranulf, and Lyre standing in the doorway.

"What the hell?" Ranulf was staring at the three birds in the confusion.

Naesala could now see what had happened. Leanne was on the floor on her back, and he was lying on top of her. Reyson had grabbed Naesala's wing and Leanne's foot, and he was also on the floor, leaning against Naesala. In other words, it looked like they were having...

"A sex party?" Lyre squeaked innocently.

"OF COURSE NOT!" Reyson shouted. He quickly stood up, as did Naesala. "We birds can't see in the dark!"

"Yes, our intelligent friend Reyson locked us in the closet, so we kept tripping on stuff," Naesala calmly explained.

"O...kay?" Ranulf was still puzzled.

Reyson helped Leanne up. "I think that's enough Sardines for today!" he remarked.

"I concur," said Ranulf.

Leanne still seemed to be in shock, for her face was quite red.

"Well, that was fun!" Naesala exclaimed, quickly regaining his composure.

"Ooh, I just realized something!" Lyre giggled. "Naesala's coming out of the closet!"

"Oh, how clever," he replied. He decided to return to his room, for, like Leanne, he was still in shock.

_That was Leanne who kissed me, right?_


	7. Chapter 7: Pigtails

_So sorry for the delay, old sport (I just finished reading The Great Gatsby. Can you tell?). I've been mega-busier than usual (as it says in my profile) so I didn't get a chance to post this till now. It's been done for a while, actually... hah. Anyways, here it is._

Chapter 7 -- Pigtails, In Which Naesala Helps With Decorating

The next day Naesala was thinking over the events in the closet that occurred the day before. He was astounded that he had already second-based her without even telling her how he felt about her.

_I'm pretty awesome! And it was all because of Reyson's stupidity! Oh, if only he knew how close he got me!_ Naesala laughed. Then he blushed a little when he remembered that Leanne had unintentionally kissed his cheek.

A knock on the door interrupted his private ego-boosting session.

"Nestling? Are you awake?"

Naesala checked his hair in the mirror once more before answering the door. "Nealuchi? What's the big rush?"

"The decorations for the king's banquet are going up today, remember?" Nealuchi answered.

"Nealuchi, _I'm_ the king. I'm not holding any banquets!"

Nealuchi shook his head and sighed. "King _Caineghis_, Nestling. Weren't you paying attention last night during dinner?"

"Pay attention? Of course I was paying attention!" _To Leanne's elegant hair._ "Fine, fine." Naesala stretched his wings. "So why does that involve me?"

"You volunteered to help decorate the dining hall."

"No I didn't! Why would I volunteer to _help_? I'm a king!"

"You raised your hand when King Caineghis asked for volunteers," the old crow calmly replied.

Naesala thought back. He remembered Leanne suddenly looking up and raising her hand, and he had raised his, too, so he could be involved in whatever she was doing.

_Crap, I didn't know it was a decorating committee..._

"Yeah, I guess I did raise my hand," the crow king finally answered.

Nealuchi sighed. "You just volunteered because Princess Leanne volunteered."

"No I didn't! That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard of!" Naesala shouted. "I'm just making sure that _you_ were paying attention, Nealuchi!"

"Oh yes, I'm sure..." Nealuchi muttered. "Well, you should get down there and start helping, Nestling. I must go help get the meal for dinner. After all, I am the best hunter in all of Gallia." He had said that last part with a chuckle.

"Whatever, Nealuchi. I'm heading over to the dining hall, I guess."

Naesala trudged off, while Nealuchi quietly giggled. _He's completely taken by her,_ the old crow thought with amusement.

Naesala reached the dining hall to see that decoration was already underway. Leanne seemed to be in charge, for she was fluttering about the room, carrying flowers and bits of ribbon.

_What does she think this is, a wedding banquet?_

Leanne soon noticed him standing there, and she happily flew over.

"Ah, Leanne! How is everything going?" he asked.

She smiled and explained that she was having a lot of fun. Then she offered him the bundle of flowers in her arms. "Help?" she asked sweetly.

"I think I better supervise the project," Naesala replied. He really just wanted to get out of doing any work.

However, Leanne continued to smile and hold the flowers out.

_She's so... cute!_ Naesala blushed. "F-fine. Where do you want me to put these?"

Leanne pointed to the high windows and explained that she wanted ribbon to hang across the windows, with flowers in the center of each window sill.

"Okay..." Naesala could feel the eyes of the other decorators on him. He flew up to the nearest window and began pinning the ribbon to the sill.

_She's so cute!_ he kept thinking as he stuck a flower on. _But this is servant's work. But she's just so adorable when she smiles like that!_ His internal argument took him all the way around the room. After he had finished with the windows, he flew back over to Leanne.

The heron princess was amazed at how pretty everything was. She informed Naesala that he should decorate more often.

"I don't think I have much of an eye for decor," he replied, slightly embarrassed.

Leanne giggled.

"Anyway, I have some leftover ribbon," he continued as he held out two small strands of pink. "Not sure what you can use it for, but--"

Leanne instantly grabbed the ribbons and grinned. Then she used them to tie her long hair into two pigtails.

"Like?" she asked him.

Naesala was speechless. _So... cute..._ He wanted to squeeze her in his arms so badly, but Reyson walked in before he could do anything.

"How's it going, Leanne?" he asked. Then he noticed her hair and added, "Aww, that looks adorable!"

Leanne giggled.

"Yeah, it's c-cute, Leanne!" Naesala finally stammered.

"Are you all right?" Reyson asked him.

"Yeah, perfectly fine!"

"I see you made it to help with the decorations. I didn't think you would actually do it!"

Naesala snapped back to his usual cockiness. "Reyson, you know how much of an eye I have for beauty!" Then he took Leanne's hand and gently kissed it.

"Yeah, all right, Naesala," Reyson muttered. "You know the hawks are coming tonight, right?"

Naesala froze. On the bright side, he took much pleasure in teasing Tibarn. Unfortunately, there was a minor drawback...

_Janaff always flirts with Leanne!_ This meant competition.

"Ah, I suspect Tibarn will be bringing his ears and eyes then," he finally remarked. "It'll be just like old times!"

Reyson nodded. "Yes, it should be interesting. Caineghis certainly loves to entertain!"

By the time the decoration was finished, it was late in the afternoon. Naesala was on his way to his room when Leanne caught up with him.

"Naesala!" she called. Her long, curly pigtails were bouncing up and down as she trotted over to him.

Naesala quickly shook off the effects of Leanne's cuteness before they could take over.

She smiled and thanked him for helping.

"I don't just help _anyone_, you know," he casually replied. Then he ran a hand through one of her pigtails. "You should keep you hair like that more often. It's cute!"

Leanne giggled as she blushed.

Naesala quickly glanced around to make sure he was alone with her. Then he leaned over and pecked her on the cheek. "I figured I would return the favor from yesterday," he whispered in her ear.

"Naesala..." she whispered.

"Ah, I saw the decorations, Princess Leanne! Very exquisite!"

Naesala quickly backed away from Leanne as Giffca approached them. _I didn't even hear him coming!_ he thought. _That was close!_

"Well, Leanne, I must be off to change," Naesala remarked.

"Change?" Giffca asked.

"Yes, I change before every meal. Didn't you notice?" He could tell that Giffca was trying not to laugh. _Ugh, he just has no sense of _style_, the hairy beast..._ "I'll see you later, Leanne, Giffca." Then he walked off to his room.

Meanwhile, Nealuchi and Ranulf were admiring the decorations in the dining hall.

"Leanne did a good job!" Ranulf exclaimed.

"Yeah, she really did!" replied Nealuchi. Then he laughed. "You know, Naesala actually came to help!"

Ranulf was stunned. "_Naesala_ did? That's crazy! He must want something in return."

"Princess Leanne's heart, I suppose."

This time Ranulf laughed. "C'mon, Nealuchi! You know as well as I do that he just likes to flirt with every woman he sees."

"No." Nealuchi smiled. "I think he genuinely adores her."

"We _are_ talking about the same Naesala, right?" Ranulf asked in disbelief.

The old crow chuckled.

"Wow, it's hard to imagine that selfish crow having strong feelings for _anyone_." Then Ranulf realized something. "Wait a minute! This means that he'll do anything for her, right?"

"Probably."

"Nealuchi, we finally have a way to control Naesala!"

Nealuchi laughed. "I suppose so! I never thought of it that way before."

"We should totally use it to our advantage!" Ranulf exclaimed.

The idea appealed to Nealuchi, and soon the two of them were plotting out how to use Naesala's infatuation to their own advantage.

The crow king walked out of his room after he had finished changing. As usual, his outfit was tight and black, but it was slightly different from the one he had been wearing.

_I was SO sexy earlier_, he thought as he grinned at his reflection in a vase. _She'll fall for me easily, if she hasn't already! That hawk doesn't stand a chance!_

He ran a hand through his hair had continued on to the dining hall. To his surprise, the hawks had already arrived. Tibarn, Ulki, and Janaff were talking with the others.

"Aw, Leanne! You're still so cute!"

Naesala turned to see Janaff with his arms around Leanne in a playful hug.

_Dammit..._


	8. Chapter 8: Ball Preparations

_Sorry if Janaff is kinda OOC in this... He just comes across as a flirt to me. Ahh! Chapter 8 means I'm more than halfway finished now! That makes me sad... _

Chapter 8 -- Ball Preparations, In Which Naesala Has a Rival

All through dinner that night, Naesala could only stare at Janaff with suspicion. Of course, Janaff was flirtacious around every girl, but...

_He's not nearly as sophisticated as me! I mean, that hairstyle is just awful! And he has that nasty scar! Leanne would never go for a dirty, ruffled hawk like him._

Janaff was sitting across from him, next to Leanne. He was eyeing her as she ate.

"Leanne, that looks yummy! Could I try some?" he asked.

Leanne smiled and took some of her fish on her fork. Janaff tried to reach out to eat right from the fork, but she quickly put it on his plate. "It good!" she explained.

Janaff laughed and took the fish from his plate and ate it. "Yes, it sure is good!"

_Idiot, I already tried that!_ Naesala thought with a grin. He happily shoveled another bite of deer into his mouth. _Finally, at least they got some deer that was at least a week old! Half-decayed meat is so much better..._

After dinner Naesala was on his way to his room when Janaff cornered him.

"Okay, crow, I hear you've been flirting with Princess Leanne! You know how totally innappropriate that is?"

"Like you should talk," Naesala muttered. "I saw you try to eat off of her fork during dinner!"

"So? At least I don't teach her dirty things in the common tongue!"

"I didn't teach her anything _dirty_," Naesala replied with a grin. "I think I taught her some stuff that could be very useful!"

Janaff grunted. "Like what?"

"The raven king is the sexiest laguz alive!" Janaff and Naesala turned to see Leanne running toward them with a large grin on her face.

"Oh, how _useful_," Janaff remarked sarcastically. "Princess, why don't you tell Naesala some of the stuff _I_ taught you!"

Leanne giggled. "Janaff is my best friend!"

Naesala frowned. "Oh sure, that is just _so_ useful! I'm sure she says it _all_ the time!"

"What is with you two? We're just here for the party, aren't we, Janaff?" Ulki came around the corner to meet them. "I can hear you arguing all over the castle!"

"Naesala's being mean to Princess Leanne!" Janaff whined.

"I am not! I'm just being cordial, which is more than you can say, you raptor!"

"At least I don't eat animals that have been dead for a week!"

"At least I groom myself!"

"WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP?" Ulki sighed. "I don't know how I'm going to deal with you two during the ball tomorrow..."

Janaff perked up. "Ball?"

"Yes, remember? During dinner Tibarn and Caineghis were talking about holding a ball tomorrow night." Ulki eyed Janaff suspiciously. "Don't tell me... you were focused on Lady Leanne the whole time..."

Janaff laughed nervously. "Of course not! I knew what you were talking about!"

Naesala rolled his eyes. _He's worse than me..._

Janaff turned back to Naesala. "Well, _I_ spend more time with Leanne, so _I'll_ obviously get more dances with her!"

"You wish..." Naesala smirked. _My dancing skills are so much more refined._

Leanne seemed worried that a fight would break out, but Janaff simply grunted and left with Ulki.

"Do you like to dance, Leanne?" Naesala asked her once they were alone again.

"Uh, well..." Leanne giggled.

Giffca soon turned the corner and interrupted them. "Ah, Princess Leanne, your brother was looking for you. He's in the throne room."

"Okay." Leanne quickly bounced off to go find Reyson.

Then Giffca turned to Naesala. "So, how many days do you have left in your visit, King Kilvas?"

Naesala thought for a moment and then realized with dismay that he only had six days left. "I'll be leaving in... six days," he finally replied. _Crap, less than a week! I'll have to work on Nealuchi to get that garden done!_

"Ah, I see." Giffca nodded. "I suppose you'll be attending the ball tomorrow?"

"Of course!" Naesala grinned triumphantly. "I have a much more sophisticated style of dancing than you cats and those hawks, though."

"I'm sure," Giffca muttered sarcastically. "Well, which of the ladies do you plan to dance with?"

Naesala realized that Giffca was trying to pry his plan out of him. "My dear Giffca, I will only ask the most beautiful, elegant ladies to dance with me. Now, I'm getting the feeling that you've been following me around. Is Caineghis worried that I'll steal something?"

"You could say that. You've been known to do it before," Giffca answered. "Reyson is the most worried, though. He wanted me to keep an eye on you. Just to let you know, I will make sure that you don't pull any funny business during the ball tomorrow." He glared at the raven to enforce it.

"Well, you don't have to worry about me, Giffca! I'm here for the fun." With that, Naesala pushed past him to go to his room. _Of course, Reyson and Caineghis have a right to fear that I'll steal something. I plan to steal Leanne's heart!_ He smirked as he passed by his reflection in his mirror. Then he practiced his dancing skills. His feet were very light as he stepped, and he was satisfied that he hadn't lost his touch. _Leanne will have no choice but to dance with me, for I am just so dashing!_

Meanwhile, Giffca was talking with Ranulf and Nealuchi in the courtyard.

"He didn't mention Leanne per se, but he was talking about 'the most beautiful, elegant ladies' as his dance partners," Giffca explained.

"Well, he's _obviously_ talking about Leanne," Ranulf told them. "Otherwise why would he be so excited about dancing around us 'cats', as he so fondly calls us?"

"If he gets every dance with Princess Leanne then it would be too predictable," Nealuchi mumbled. "We need to find a way to embarrass Nestling so that he is forced to come out and tell everyone that he is completely infatuated with her."

"Um, Nealuchi, why are you so enthusiastic about embarrassing your own king? Shouldn't you be yelling at us for being disrespectful?" Ranulf asked him.

Nealuchi chuckled. "Well, like Nestling said, sometimes I just get bored. Besides, he wants me to build a garden in Kilvas for Princess Leanne, so I think this is adequate payment."

Both Giffca and Ranulf burst out into laughter at the idea of a garden existing in the rocky terrain of Kilvas.

"A _garden_?! A GARDEN! Is he seriously that desperate?" Ranulf gasped.

"I suppose so," Nealuchi replied. "I almost find it cute to see him acting like this, I must say."

"Well, just so long as he does not do anything that would endanger the princess' safety... among other things," Giffca muttered.

Nealuchi looked at Giffca in confusion. "What do you mean, Giffca? Nestling wouldn't do anything to hurt her! At least, if he does, I won't let him!" Then he sighed. "I just hope Nestling isn't stupid enough to start fooling around with her."

"That is precisely what Prince Reyson is concerned about," Giffca explained. "Well, I must take leave of you, my good sirs. I shall see you both at the ball tomorrow."

Ranulf turned to Nealuchi. "Anyway, Nealuchi, what do you think would work to embarrass Naesala?"

The old crow thought for a moment. "I suppose... we could keep him from dancing with Princess Leanne until he is completely desperate."

Ranulf gasped. "Nealuchi! You're turning into an evil mastermind!"

"Well, I am of the raven tribe!" he chuckled. "Then we will just trade off dancing with Princess Leanne until Nestling cracks."

"It's perfect!" Ranulf grinned. "And that'll keep me from having to dance with--"

"Ranulf!" Lyre shouted from one of the windows, "you're dancing with me the whole at the ball tomorrow night, right?"

"Uh, yeah... C'mon, Nealuchi, let's go!" Ranulf ran off before Lyre could catch up with him.

In the throne room, Reyson was telling Leanne about how balls usually work, for this was her first one.

"Now, Leanne, there is usually a lot of dancing, and I know you're not very fond of--"

"I dance!" Leanne protested. "You teach me!"

Reyson shook his head. "Leanne, you know I don't dance. You'll have to get one of the ladies to teach you."

Leanne sighed. Then she asked, "Pretty dress?"

"Leanne? Goodness, you're really excited for this, aren't you? Has Lyre gotten to you?"

"No, not Lyre..." Leanne giggled. "Pretty dress?"

"Leanne, I know nothing about dresses. But one thing I know for sure is that it's going to be a modest dress." Reyson looked at her sternly. "I don't want Nae-- I mean, men to get the wrong idea when they see you."

However, Leanne wasn't paying attention. She was already planning out what kind of dress she would wear. "Pretty ribbons, pretty silk, pretty necklace..." Then she got an idea. She quickly ran off to her room, leaving Reyson staring after her in confusion.

_I only hope she doesn't end up alone with Naesala... Goodness knows what he'll do around her, especially with all the alcohol around,_ Reyson thought.

Leanne closed the door of her room behind her and ran over to her desk. She opened a drawer to find the necklace that Naesala had given her.

"Has to match," she whispered. "I go find Lyre."

Once again, Leanne was happily bouncing through the halls, excited about how she would look for tomorrow.

Naesala was also picking out his clothes for the ball. However, since he only wears black, there wasn't much to choose from.

_I suppose I could wear this one... It shows a good amount of my chest, and it keeps my sexy shape._ Then he looked at himself in the mirror. _My gosh, I'm acting like a girl... I gotta stop getting so worked up about my clothes... But I have to look fashionable and sophisticated!_

The whole castle was in an uproar over the dance, and no one had any clue what would happen the next night...


	9. Chapter 9: The Ball

_And now, the moment you've all been waiting for! The Gallia Ball! Where anything can happen! lol Enjoy!_

Chapter 9 -- The Ball, In Which There is a Lot of Dancing (duh)

It was the night of the ball in Castle Gallia, and everyone was excited. Naesala had looked over his appearance three times before leaving his room, and on his way to the ballroom he stopped to check his hair at every reflective vase he could find. When he entered the ballroom, he noticed that music was already playing.

_All right, Leanne, time to dance! It will be the most romantic night of your life!_

The members of the various laguz tribes began engaging in a country line dance. Naesala rapidly glanced around the room to see if he could get to Leanne first, but instead he found Janaff doing the same thing. Their eyes locked and instantly a challenge was set forth.

_That nasty hawk has no style. How would he even know how to dance?_ Naesala grinned. He knew that he had the upper hand this time. Any elegant lady like Leanne would obviously choose a well-dressed, suave gentleman over a dirty, flirtacious hawk.

Before long the two bachelors noticed Leanne at the opposite end of the room, by the punch bowl. She was talking with Lethe and Lyre, who were both dressed very fancily for cat warriors. Naesala glanced over at Janaff and saw that the hawk was quickly making his way over to the heron princess. Naesala rushed through the crowd to beat him to her. However, when he was within ten yards of her, Nealuchi approached Leanne out of nowhere and began chatting with her.

"Lady Leanne, are you enjoying yourself this evening?" the old crow asked her.

"Fun!" Leanne exclaimed.

Nealuchi smiled. "Would you give this old crow the honor of a dance?"

Leanne blushed and giggled, "I bad... dancing."

"That is fine! We're here to have fun, anyway."

Leanne thought for a moment. "Okay!"

Naesala and Janaff stared in shock as Nealuchi walked over to the center of the floor with Leanne.

_What?! She would take Nealuchi over me? OVER ME??_

"Hey, why don't you two lovebirds be gentlemen and ask us to dance!"

Naesala turned to see Lyre looking at him reproachfully. Lethe was behind her, staring at him in disgust.

"Uh...why? Don't any of the cats like you?"

Lyre glared at him. "Shut up! They're just too intimidated to ask me! So ask me NOW!"

"Lyre, don't be so forceful..." Lethe muttered.

Janaff quickly stepped in. "Why, Miss Lethe, may I have this dance?"

"Certainly!" Lethe eagerly took the opportunity to get away from Naesala.

"Well?" Lyre asked after Janaff had left with her sister. "Are you going to ask me or not?"

_Fleas fleas fleas fleas... rampant fleas... I'll get eaten alive..._

Naesala sighed. "Miss Lyre, would you dance with me?"

"Of course, my raven gentleman!" Lyre extended her hand, which Naesala regretfully took as he escorted her to the dance floor.

_Next dance! I'll be prepared this time!_ he thought as the line dance began.

Fortunately for him, Lyre was a fairly accomplished dancer, so he didn't have to worry about further embarrassment. However, he continued to watch with envy as Leanne and Nealuchi danced together. He noticed that Leanne, despite her graceful appearance, was really a terrible dancer. She tended to step on Nealuchi's feet, and she often got mixed up as to which way she was supposed to go through the line.

_Poor thing... I suppose herons just don't enjoy the fine art of dancing... Where is Reyson, anyway?_ He glanced around and finally saw Reyson talking with Tibarn. _Hawks aren't very accomplished in society, either..._

Before long the dance had ended, and Naesala was once again searching the room for Leanne. At the same time he also wanted to hide from Lyre, since it seemed that no other laguz in his right mind could stand her. He soon found Leanne across the room, and this time he wasted no time in reaching her. She noticed him coming up to her and waved.

"Hi, Naesala!" she exclaimed. "Fun?"

"Yes, it is quite fun." He grinned mischeivously. Janaff was nowhere to be found. "So, Leanne, did you like dancing?"

She giggled. "I wish I better dancer. Nealuchi nice."

"Yes, he is... nice... Anyway, Leanne, if you want, I could teach you how--"

"Hey, Leanne! Would you like to dance with me?"

Ranulf came up behind Leanne and grabbed her hand. Naesala only stared at him in surprise.

_Like hell she'll dance with you, you flea-ridden..._

"Okay!" She smiled. Then she turned to Naesala. "See you later!"

Naesala could only gape. _Why did she say yes to _him_? First the old crow, now this flea-ridden cat? Sheesh!_ Then he remembered how Reyson had mentioned something about how Ranulf had been teaching Leanne how to talk. _Maybe she's just returning the favor. The cat taught her the new tongue, and Nealuchi is serving as her escort._ He sighed and shook his head. _Poor thing doesn't realize that these events are supposed to be romantic!_

He spotted Nealuchi standing off to the side, so he went over there in order to avoid Lyre. He noticed that Janaff was talking to Ulki while keeping his eyes on Leanne and Ranulf.

"So, Nealuchi, did you enjoy your dance with Leanne?" Naesala asked in a somewhat irritated tone.

"Are you jealous, Nestling? Goodness, I was only being polite!" Nealuchi grinned.

"Nealuchi, first you ask her to dance, and then Ranulf asks her to dance. Now, I've noticed you two have been talking together a _lot_. Does Ranulf, by any chance, know of my... being partial to Leanne?"

Nealuchi only smiled. "Possibly."

"You told him, didn't you..."

"Of _course_ not, Nestling! I only mentioned something about you being after Princess Leanne's heart."

"That's the same thing!" Naesala shouted. _He's even more crafty than me sometimes..._

"Well, Nestling, this dance is almost over. I would suggest that you go hunt her down now," Nealuchi calmly told him. "Otherwise, I might beat you to it!" Then he slowly tottered off.

_What is their problem? What the hell are they planning, anyway?_

Naesala spotted Leanne walking away from Ranulf and quickly darted after her. However, he saw that Janaff was also charging toward her. He sped up and got to her right as Janaff approached her from the opposite direction.

They both shouted, "Leanne, would you like to--"

Leanne seemed flustered now that two men were cornering her. She finally giggled and turned to Janaff.

"I talk to Naesala. He talking to me earlier."

Janaff's face dropped.

Leanne then turned to Naesala. "Okay, what you ask me?"

Naesala grinned triumphantly. "Could I talk to you for a second? Over there?" He pointed to the corner of the room. _I really want to get away from that hawk before he interrupts and asks her to dance!_

Leanne nodded and followed him to the other side of the room.

"So, Leanne, how are you enjoying yourself?" he asked her when he was sure that no one was listening.

"Fun!" she exclaimed. "What you ask me earlier?"

Naesala took her hand in a suave fashion. "Would you like to dance?"

"I..." Leanne looked down and blushed. "I bad dancing. You good dancing. I get in your way."

"Oh, Leanne... You wouldn't get in my way!" He leaned closer to her and whispered in her ear, "I've been wanting to dance with you all evening."

"Really?"

"Of course! If the old crow and that stupid cat hadn't gotten in the way--"

Leanne giggled. "You really wanting to dance with me?"

"Yes. If you want, I can teach you a few things." He smiled.

"Thank you! I dance with you!"

"All right! Well, for now I'll teach you a few steps."

He took her hand and led her through a basic line dance.

"You just make sure to stay light on your feet. See?"

She nodded and started practicing. "I think I get..."

Then Naesala noticed her outfit for the first time. She was wearing a champagne-colored dress with green ribbon running through the sleeves and the bottom. The dress was modestly low-cut, and it complimented her figure perfectly. He also saw that she was wearing her green necklace.

"Ah, Leanne, I just realized that you're wearing the necklace I gave you!" he remarked.

She looked down and blushed. "I...I like it."

Naesala smiled. "I can tell. I'm glad you like it."

Soon the music began playing again, and Naesala and Leanne took their positions. Within the first few steps Leanne had already stepped on his feet twice, but she was so light that he didn't really notice. She seemed to be getting a bit discouraged.

"Just keep your feet light and you'll have nothing to worry about," he whispered as he passed her.

"Okay."

He gently took her hand to reassure her. She became more confident, and by the time the final notes were playing she was going much faster and more lively. When the last note played and everyone stopped, for that instant, their eyes met. Naesala was completely hypnotized by her bright, emerald eyes. He wanted to hold her right then and there.

"Leanne... I..." He began pulling her closer.

"Naesala..."

Their eyes were still locked. Naesala soon forgot that he was not alone with her and put his arms around her.

"Um, Naesala?"

Naesala instantly snapped back to reality and realized that everyone was staring at them. Reyson was standing next to him, looking at Leanne protectively.

"I would like my sister back for a second," Reyson muttered.

"Oh, of _course_, dear Reyson! I must say, she is a _lovely_ dance partner!" Naesala grinned and let go of Leanne. "So, have you danced with anyone yet?"

Reyson sighed. "Dancing isn't really my type of actitivy."

"Well! I suppose you would refuse if a lady wished to dance with you, then!" Naesala gestured over to Lyre. "That poor lady has been wanting to dance all evening and has only been able to get a partner once! I think the polite gentleman would go oblige her humble request!"

"Come on, Leanne, let's go over by the punch bowl." Reyson took his sister's arm and led her away. However, Naesala noticed that she took one quick glance back at him and mouthed, "Thank you."

The raven king sighed and began looking for Nealuchi.

_I see now. They wanted to embarrass me! Well! I was too clever for that!_ He found Nealuchi talking to Ranulf.

"Well, my two fine friends! How are you this evening!" Naesala smirked.

"You certainly seemed to enjoy your dance with Princess Leanne, Nestling!" Nealuchi remarked. "It's a shame that Prince Reyson interfered so soon. You looked like you were ready to kiss--"

"Nealuchi. I was not going to kiss her. I was merely... thanking her for the dance. Like any polite gentleman would have done."

"You were going to kiss her. You were completely _entranced_ by her gaze!" Ranulf began laughing.

"Look, cat, I think that a certain young kitten was desperate for a dance. Why don't you go ask her?"

Ranulf stopped. "No. She's going after me, you know! She's going to hunt me down until I finally give in and--"

"Lyre! Oh, Lyre! Could I speak to you for a second?" Naesala shouted. The young cat instantly ran over to them.

"Yeah? Do you want another dance? You know, that last one with Princess Leanne looked so _romantic_!"

"Yes, well..." Naesala grinned. "I believe that my friend Ranulf here is going to ask you do dance with him."

Lyre's eyes lit up. "Really! Oh, Ranulf! You're so sweet!" She hugged him.

Ranulf was speechless and only could look around for help.

"Now, Ranulf, as the polite gentleman, I do suggest that you keep your promise!"

Ranulf glared at Naesala. "Lyre, w-will you dance with... me?"

"Of course!" Lyre giggled. "You're so nice!" The music started up again to give a cue for all the dancers. "Come on, Ran-Ran, let's go!"

"Y-yeah..." Ranulf helplessly walked off with Lyre.

"There. Now I have gotten back at one of you." Naesala turned to Nealuchi. "How will I embarrass you, old crow?"

Nealuchi only smiled. "Aren't you going to ask Leanne to dance again? Or is Janaff going to get to her first?"

Naesala quickly turned around to see Janaff asking Leanne for a dance. _Damn! I take my eyes off of her for two seconds!_ He tried to rush back over to her, but he noticed that she was walking toward him.

"Ah, Leanne! You're not dancing with that hawk, I see." Naesala grinned. _Yes! She turned him down! I win again!_

"Oh, I going to bed," she explained. "I tired."

"Oh." Then Naesala had an idea. "Would you like me to take you to your room? After all, you're tired! You don't want to fall asleep before you get there!"

Leanne smiled. "I be all right. Thank you." Then she looked at him. "Um, Naesala?"

"Yes?"

She took a deep breath. "I... I... Th-thank you for teaching me."

"Of course, Leanne." He took her hand and gently kissed it. "Good night."

She smiled and walked away.


	10. Chapter 10: First Warning

_Trying to reduce the drama and keep up the comedy. Let me know if I was successful! lol_

Chapter 10 -- First Warning, In Which Naesala Is In Leanne's Room

"Nestling! Nestling, wake up! I have urgent news from Kilvas!"

Naesala groaned as he sat up in bed. _Damn hangover..._ he thought as he grabbed his head. "What is it, Nealuchi?"

"Urgent news from Kilvas! You have to read this right away!" the old crow called.

Instantly, Naesala was up and alert. _Don't tell me something bad happened! There shouldn't be anything going on!_ He loosely fixed up his hair and threw on some pants (A/N: Naesala sleeps nude? O/O) "Is everything all right?" the raven king gasped as he opened the door.

Nealuchi smiled. "Yes, yes. It's good news! This should excite you, Nestling!" He handed a note to Naesala, who scanned it over a few times before its meaning reached his brain.

"An entire _fleet_ of merchants headed to Begnion?!" Naesala looked back up at Nealuchi. "It's still winter there, right?"

"Yes, as far as I know. They must be pretty desperate if they're braving the sea in these conditions!" Nealuchi chuckled. "If we leave now we could get back to Kilvas in time to launch a raiding party."

The offer was indeed tempting. However, Naesala still had one major problem: he had not yet convinced Leanne to come back with him!

_Sure, I could always come back to Gallia after the raid, but... I'm getting so close this time!_

Nealuchi, instantly guessing his king's thoughts, remarked, "So now you must choose between stealing a fortune of goods from helpless merchants or stealing the heart of your beloved Princess Leanne."

"Shut up, Nealuchi." Naesala turned a slight shade of pink. "I'll think about it. Let me finish getting dressed." He shut the door and began putting on his morning outfit.

_I suppose I could just send an order back to the boys, but if they somehow botch it up then Kilvas is completely open to attack... I could just straight out ask Leanne to come with me..._ The thought caused his already pink face to turn a darker shade of red. _But if I leave Leanne here then that damn hawk will get to her first!_

Naesala thought back to the night before. That dance had been so perfect... if only they had been alone...

Then he got it. _Of course! I'll just send Nealuchi to Kilvas! He's a pretty clever fellow! And then he'll be out of my feathers, so he won't do anymore plotting with that stupid cat!_ Naesala grinned. _While I'm at it, I'll get him to start on the garden, so that when I return with Leanne in a few days, it'll be almost finished! Oh, I am so brilliant!_

He glanced in the mirror and ran a hand through his hair. _Brilliant and sexy. Doesn't get much better than that!_

The raven king, with his reboosted ego, went over to the throne room to give Nealuchi his answer. When he got there, he noticed that the hawks were preparing to leave as well. Nealuchi was talking with Tibarn.

"All right, Nealuchi, here's my plan," Naesala told him.

"Ah, so you know about the merchant fleet as well, Naesala?" Tibarn remarked. "Sure looks like a good find. Too bad they're not coming _from_ Begnion, or I'd have left last night to catch them first."

"Yes, too bad. Anyway, Nealuchi, I think you should go back and lead the raid. That way, if they only spot one crow, they won't suspect as much."

"Are you sure, Nestling? You're the faster flyer!"

"Yes, well... They're bound to get slowed down by the waves. You'll have plenty of time. Besides, I want you to go get started on the... project."

Tibarn eyed him suspiciously. "Project? What kind of project?"

"Just some, uh, landscaping to better the fair country of Kilvas, my friend. Nothing of great exciteme--"

"He wants to build a garden," Nealuchi bluntly interrupted.

Tibarn stared at them in disbelief. "A garden? With Kilvas' rocky terrain?" The hawk king burst out laughing. "You'd have a better chance at building one in the northernmost part of Daein than in Kilvas!"

"You underestimate me, Tibarn. We'll find a way," the raven king assured him.

"So, Naesala, why exactly are you--"

"Nealuchi! You understand what I want you to do, right?" Naesala blurted, interrupting Tibarn to avoid any more questions about his garden for Leanne.

"Yes, of course." Nealuchi chuckled. "I suppose you'll be finishing up some 'business' before you come home, Nestling?"

"Hurry, Nealuchi! You have to beat the merchants to Kilvas!"

Naesala propelled the old crow away from Tibarn. Once they were out of earshot, he whispered, "Two weeks, remember? I gave myself two weeks, and it hasn't been two weeks yet!"

"It's been ten days, Nestling."

"That gives me four more days. Plenty of time."

Nealuchi turned to him and chuckled softly. "You're completely in love with her!"

"So? I'm not denying it. That's why you set up your little plot at the ball."

"Well, I must say that I would greatly enjoy having Princess Leanne at Kilvas everyday over any other woman." Nealuchi grinned. "Good luck, Nestling!"

Naesala was a little surprised to hear Nealuchi agreeing with him for once. _I'm actually upset that he's leaving for a while... That old crow..._ "Thanks, Nealuchi. Now get going."

Nealuchi smiled and left the room.

Naesala sighed. _Now I just have to get past Reyson and those cats..._ He was wandering the hallways, trying to come up with a way to win over the others, when he heard a sniffling sound. He followed the sound until he came upon a room that he remembered to be Leanne's room. Forgetting about prior warnings from both Reyson and Caineghis, he rushed into the room to see Leanne crying into her pillow. She looked up, startled, as he burst in, and she tried to hide her face so he wouldn't see tear streaks.

"Are you all right, Leanne? Did you get hurt? Did someone say something nasty to you?" Naesala gasped.

Leanne's face was scarlet as her muffled voice answered, "It no big deal..."

_Oh crap, I just embarrassed her... Damn, I didn't mean to do that!_ Naesala stood silent for a while as he wrestled with the decision of whether or not to take the opportunity to comfort her. Finally, he came closer to her bed and softly patted her shoulder. "You can tell me, Leanne. I promise I won't tell anyone."

Leanne's teary eyes peered out from behind her pillow. "P-promise you not laugh," she whispered.

"Laugh?" Naesala sat down next to her. "Leanne, if you're crying about it, then it's obviously not something to laugh at! Of course I won't laugh."

Leanne nodded and took her pillow away from her face so she could hug it to her chest. "I saying bye-bye to Tibarn and Janaff and Ulki. I wanting to say, 'Have a nice trip back,' but I forget how. So I say, 'Have a knife in you back,' and Tibarn confused. I think of other to say: 'Have fun time going home,' but I say..." At this Leanne sniffed, trying to hold back tears. "I say... 'Have fun time doing whores.'"

Naesala could imagine the look on Reyson's face upon hearing his sister talk about whores. He was finding it hard not to laugh, but fortunately he was able to restrain himself.

Tears were once again streaming down Leanne's face as she continued. "They all look at me upset, and Tibarn look angry. I realize what I say and then I... I run back here..."

Naesala put his arm around Leanne as she sobbed into his jacket. "Leanne, I'm sure they know that you meant to say something else... You're still learning the language. It's a common mistake!" _Well, I'm sure not many people accidently substitute 'whores' for 'home,' but I won't tell her that._

"They mad at me!" Leanne cried.

"No, no, Leanne..." He lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes. "Tibarn's angry at whoever it was who taught you that phrase. By the way, who _did_ teach you that phrase?"

Leanne blinked as she thought back. "I... hear it somewhere... S-soldier say it, I think..."

_Tibarn probably thinks I taught that to her... figures..._

Naesala softly stroked her shoulder. "Remember what I said before? Learning a new language takes time. But you're really making progress, Leanne!"

She leaned against his chest. "Really?"

"Yeah!" Naesala laughed. "It took Reyson forever just to be able to say 'thank you.' He kept saying, 'Shank you!' instead."

Leanne giggled.

"So then I'd say, 'No, I'm shanking you first!' and pull down his pants."

Leanne wrinkled her nose in confusion. "What 'shank' mean?"

"Ah, well, it's a kind of, um... prank..." Naesala quickly decided to change topics. "Anyway, Leanne, you're good at saying lots of other stuff. Don't worry about the hawks."

Leanne looked into his eyes and smiled. "Thank you, Naesala." Then she giggled softly. "Yes, I good at saying that! I practicing--" She suddenly blushed and covered her mouth.

"Leanne? What is it?"

Softly, she whispered, "I practicing... what you teach me..."

"Oh, you have?" Now it was Naesala's turn to blush. He leaned closer to her and whispered, "Do you want to practice it right now, in front of me?"

"I... yes, I practice... I tell you..."

Naesala thought he heard footsteps coming, but he was too engrossed by her eyes to notice. "Say it like this: I love you."

"I..."

"I think you're going to be in big trouble, King Kilvas."

Naesala and Leanne both jumped and looked to see Giffca standing in the doorway.

"Ah, G-Giffca! So strange to see you here!" Naesala squeaked.

"Yes, I could say the same to you." Giffca looked at him sternly. "I suppose it's time for me to report this to King Caineghis."

Leanne quickly stood up and ran over to him. "Naesala helping me! He doing nothing bad!"

"Helping you? What do you mean, Princess Leanne?" the lion calmly asked.

Leanne glanced back at Naesala. "I sad... earlier... He helping cheer me up! He being nice to me since he come! He teaching me how to talk and dance and cheering me up and--"

"Okay, my lady, I understand." Giffca smiled. "I promise I won't report him... for now."

Leanne sighed. "Thank you!" She turned to Naesala, happy that she had kept him safe. However, when her eyes met his, she instantly turned red and looked down. "Thank you... h-helping me," she mumbled softly.

Naesala was still a bit stunned by her passionate speech, but he stood up and walked toward her. "You're quite welcome. I'm afraid I must leave now, though..." He was about to grab her hand and kiss it, but then he decided that it was not a wise thing to do with Giffca watching. "If you need to talk some more, just let me know." Then he followed Giffca out the door and down the hall.

Once they were far enough from Leanne's room, he faced Giffca.

"Okay, are you following me or something? You're always popping up out of nowhere when I'm--"

"When you're about to kiss her. Yes, I'm well aware." Giffca looked at him sternly. "From the moment you arrived we guessed that you were here to have some fun."

"Fun? In what sense of the word? I must say, I'm having quite a bit of fun since I came here." Naesala grinned.

"You know what I mean," Giffca muttered.

Naesala took a deep breath. "I've known Leanne since we were fledgings. I wouldn't just come here to mess around with her."

He was surprised by what he just said, so he decided to leave. He was about to turn when Giffca stopped him.

"Ah, King Kilvas?"

"Yes?"

"If Reyson or I catch you with her like that one more time, we'll be bound to think otherwise." Then he left Naesala alone in the hallway.

_Damn, they're really getting worked up over this... I guess I'll just have to tell her everything..._ He sighed. _At least Reyson wasn't the one to catch me! That would have been really bad!_


	11. Chapter 11: I Love You

_So this chapter is a little more serious because a lot of stuff comes out. But don't worry it'll get funny again next chapter. Anyway, I'm feeling evil right now cuz I'll be busy for the next few weeks, so..._

_BWA HA HA cliffhanger. Enjoy! :D_

* * *

Chapter 11 -- "I Love You," In Which Naesala Is Caught in a Darkened Room With Leanne

The next day Naesala had made up his mind to tell Leanne everything.

_Hopefully that old coot has the garden underway... It better be gorgeous by the time I get back!_

He went over to the throne room to look for Leanne, but when he found her she was already talking with Reyson.

_Probably not a good idea to pull her away from Reyson... I'll have to find her alone._

He walked up to them and joined in the conversation, waiting for one of them to leave. However, Reyson was keeping a steady eye on him.

"Ah, Leanne," Naesala finally blurted, "would you like to take a walk in the garden?"

Leanne looked down and blushed. "Uh, well..."

"Oh, Leanne, I think Father wanted to tell you something," Reyson interrupted. "Naesala, if you would excuse us."

"Of course," Naesala answered. _Okay, if you're gonna play that way..._

Later on in the day, Naesala saw Leanne walking through the courtyard.

_Perfect! I don't see anyone else around! Try to stop me now, Reyson!_

He began to approach her and was ready to call her when Ranulf popped out from the bushes.

"Ready for your lesson, Leanne?" he asked.

She nodded and walked off with him. Naesala could only stare after them in shock.

_Damn... stupid... cat!_

Sighing, he sat down under a tree and absentmindedly picked on a blade of grass.

_I guess I should at least take the time to figure out a way to tell her..._ He ran a hand through his hair and began practicing.

"'Hey, baby, let's get hitched!' No, that's horribly unrefined... 'Leanne, we've known each other since we were little, and I always knew that you would be the one for me.' Ugh..."

He stood up and nervously paced back and forth under the tree.

"'Leanne, you are more beautiful than any of the treasures I have ever stolen.' Ugh, that makes me sound like a criminal..."

Finally, Leanne and Ranulf reappeared from behind the bush. Naesala rushed over to them to talk to Leanne.

"Leanne! I have something to--"

"Hey, Naesala, how did Nealuchi's raid go?" Ranulf interrupted. "Did he make it there in time?"

Naesala turned to him and glared. "What is this, some sort of conspiracy?" He looked back to call out to Leanne again, but she was already gone. "Stupid cat!" he shouted at Ranulf.

Ranulf stared at him in shock. "What? I'm just asking about Nealuchi!"

"Well, I need to tell Leanne something before I lose my mind!"

Ranulf cocked his head. "You were talking to her and Reyson earlier. Why didn't you just tell her--" Then he figured it out. "Oh! You're going to confess your undying love for her!"

Naesala blushed. "P-possibly... Look, it's none of your business, cat!"

Ranulf grinned. "Aww, are you going to give her flowers?"

Naesala glared at him. "I'm glad you're enjoying yourself," he muttered. However, he quickly snapped off a few nearby tulips and hid them in his jacket. "Why don't you go bother your darling cat Lyre?"

"Ugh, I can't stand Lyre... Fine, I won't tell anyone." Then he grinned. "Now, don't do anything improper!"

Naesala rolled his eyes and walked off. _Stupid cat..._

He decided to go to his room and fix himself up extra specially for dinner. _I have to look sexy to the max!_ He fixed his hair and looked for his fanciest jacket. Then he bundled up the tulips and looked at himself in the mirror.

_I'm... so... SEXY!_

He grinned. After dinner he would take her out in the courtyard and confess his love to her in the moonlight. It was perfect. He felt completely suave and romantic. Just then, he heard a gentle knock at the door.

"Yes, yes, come in," he casually muttered.

He turned to the door and was surprised to see Leanne standing there. She shut the door behind her.

"Ah. Reyson wouldn't like it if he saw you in here by yourself. Smart move, my dear!" Naesala finished adjusting his jacket.

"N-Naesala," she whispered.

Naesala looked at her face and noticed that she appeared nervous. "Are you all right? You look scared or something." Then he realized that he only had a small, dim candle lighting the room. "Oh, is it the dark? I can light another candle or something--"

Leanne rushed up to him and grabbed onto his arms. "I... I t-tell you... something."

Naesala could tell that she was really anxious about something. "What is it, Leanne?"

She took a deep breath. "I love you."

At first, Naesala wasn't sure how to reply. Then he wondered if she was just practicing her common tongue. _Yeah. That's it. She's practicing._

"Oh, Leanne, you got it! You said it right! Congratulations!" He smiled. "You must have really been practicing!"

Leanne sighed and shook her head. "I love you. I..." She pointed to her lips. "Love..." Then she looked straight into his eyes. "You."

_She's serious. She really... loves me? That means... I WIN!!_ Naesala leaned his face close to hers. "Ah, that kind of love. I see. Well, in that case..." He slowly ran his hand through her hair and pressed his lips against hers. He heard her sigh softly.

Various thought began to run through his head. _Well, now we've finally come to an understanding about each other. So what does this mean? Is she going to go back with me to Kilvas? Or does she plan to elope? I don't mind an elopement, although it would leave things in a dreadful mess, not to mention we'd have the entire laguz race chasing after us..._

He finally let her go and looked into her eyes. "Leanne... You know I've loved you all this time, right?"

She smiled and nodded. "I... wanting to say for long time... not know right words. Then you teach me right words."

"I'll teach you any words you want to learn, Leanne. Anything." Then he laughed. "You know, Reyson won't like this."

She giggled. "Maybe he will. I... ex-plain to him after dinner."

"That's a good idea. He'll listen to you. If I told him then he'd think I was just planning on messing around."

She leaned against his chest. "In closet... that day..."

"Thank goodness he didn't see what actually happened! Now, you know, I normally wouldn't do that to you on purpose. Unless you wanted me to." He looked down at her and grinned.

Leanne giggled. Then she gazed into his eyes. "I wanting to go to Kilvas."

Naesala was a little surprised. "To Kilvas? Now?"

She nodded. "Soon."

"How long would you plan on staying?" He fingered through her hair. "Just two weeks, like me?"

"For... long time." She reached up and kissed him again.

"A long time? As in... living there?" Naesala was beginning to wonder where this conversation was going, if it was truly referring to her marr--

She giggled. "Naesala... you funny. Of course I live there!" She smiled, as though she knew the question was coming.

"Okay, I see where this is going." He took a deep breath. "Leanne, if we get this all settled out... would you... Wait a minute, I need something first..." He backed away and dug through his stuff to find one of the many rings he had stolen.

However, Leanne quickly hugged him from behind. "I go back with you... forever..."

"Leanne..." Naesala held her close to himself and kissed her, this time with great passion. Finally, he had accomplished his goal. Leanne would go back to Kilvas with him, and soon they would get married. After all, she wouldn't be able to say no at this point. Everything was just as it should be...

Suddenly, the door opened.

"Naesala!"

Naesala looked up and saw Reyson standing at the door in shock.

"Y-you... with Leanne... you were going to..."

"It was just a kiss, Reyson! Honestly! Ask Leanne!"

"You were going to... You filthy crow!" Reyson rushed over to them and grabbed Leanne's arm. "Leanne, I told you not to go near him by yourself! The way he's been acting around you..." He glared at Naesala. "I knew you were planning something like this!"

"Reyson, calm down! All I did was kiss her!" Then he sighed. "Actually, she kissed me. Well, it was more like I kissed her, then she kissed me, then I kissed her again..."

"Enough of your lies!" Reyson pulled Leanne away. "I'll make sure that Caineghis knows about this!"

Leanne was speechless, mostly from shock at her brother's sudden anger.

"Leanne, explain it to him. He'll listen to you."

"R-Reyson... I..."

"Come on, Leanne. We're going to the king. You're safe now." Reyson pushed Leanne out of the room and angrily slammed the door.

Naesala continued to stand in the middle of the room in shock.

_Go after them, you idiot! You can't lose her now!_

Naesala shook his head and ran out of the room.

"Reyson! Reyson! Get back here and listen to me!"


	12. Chapter 12: Rules

_I'm back! Yay! I'm so happy to have free time again!  
But anyways, Naesala gets somewhat more serious than usual for a little bit, but then the humor comes back. Yay humor! I hope you all like it! :D_

Chapter 12 -- Rules, In Which Reyson is Really Pissed

Naesala ran after Reyson and Leanne into the throne room, where Giffca and Caineghis were waiting.

"Reyson, will you just listen to me?" he shouted. "You're way overreacting to this!"

Reyson turned to him and glared. "You just like to use whatever is around you to get your satisfaction! I'm not getting fooled by your sweet-talk anymore!"

"Do you think I'd do anything to hurt Leanne? Come on, Reyson, I've known you guys since we were kids!"

"Yes, and you were quick to sell me to Duke Tanas just because you needed the money!"

Naesala sighed. "Do you have to bring that up? That was different..."

"How? How was it different, Naesala?"

"S-stop it!" Leanne jumped out between Naesala and Reyson. "Reyson, not be m-mean! Not... yell..."

Reyson looked at her in surprise. "Leanne, don't you realize what he's trying to do?" He began talking to her in the old tongue, warning her of Naesala's past treachery.

The raven shook his head. _I thought he had gotten over all of that..._

Leanne frowned. "Naesala nice to me.. I t-trust Naesala... I..." She turned to Naesala and blushed. He smiled back at her to reassure her. "I... I love him."

Reyson gasped. Giffca and Caineghis, who had been watching the whole proceeding with amusement, merely grunted.

"H-how do you know he's being sincere?" Reyson asked. "Leanne, if anything happened to you, I--"

"Reyson..." She walked up to him and gently patted his shoulder. "I know Naesala care for me. He help me lots and he nice and... uh... he want to... I-I want to.." She blushed and tried to think of the word she wanted to say.

Naesala walked up behind her and hugged her. "Why don't we talk about that later," he whispered.

Leanne giggled.

"I... I see..." Reyson sighed. "Leanne, can I talk to Naesala privately?"

Leanne looked startled.

"It's all right, Leanne," Naesala assured her. "It's probably for the best."

She glanced back at him and nodded. "I go outside." Then she walked out of the room.

Reyson turned to Naesala. "I... I don't know what to say. Part of me wants to trust you, and part of me still hasn't forgiven you for what you did to me back then..."

Naesala shrugged. "You always did hold grudges. As you can see, Leanne doesn't seem to care about any of that."

"Leanne... she's too innocent..." Reyson looked at him sternly. "How can I know that you're being serious about all of this?"

"Reyson... you and Leanne are..." Naesala sighed. "You and Leanne are probably the most important people to me in the whole world."

Reyson's eyes widened. "What?"

"I'm being totally serious here! You know I don't spout out sentimental crap like that in front of just anybody!"

"Then why--"

"I was desperate, Reyson. I didn't think you would react the way you did, okay?"

Reyson looked at him in silence.

"Nestling, we did it! We're filthy rich! The raid was a total success!"

Reyson and Naesala turned around to see Nealuchi burst into the room with various jewels in his hands.

"Raid? What rai... Wait, you're already done?!" Naesala ran over to him. "How the hell did you pull that off?"

"The same way I caught the bison, Nestling," he answered. "Skill and patience."

"Oh..." Then Naesala grinned. "Well, _I_ kissed Leanne THREE TIMES!"

Nealuchi stared at him in shock. "You _what_?! What about Prince Reyson? Did you do anything improper? Nestling, I told you to control your hormones a little better!"

Reyson shook his head. "Stupid raven..."

Naesala sighed. "No, I didn't do anything improper, you old coot. Besides, Reyson..." He turned to the white prince. "Your sister is hornier than I am!"

"She is not!"

Leanne finally burst in. "How it go?"

Everyone turned to her and stared at her.

"Princess Leanne, is Nestling being a bad influence on you?" Nealuchi asked. "Just because he's incredibly horny doesn't mean you have to spur him on..."

"I'm not horny!" the raven king protested.

The argument continued for several more minutes.

Finally, Leanne piped up again. "What horny mean?"

Once again everyone turned to her slowly.

"Well... it's like..." Naesala began, though he was unsure how to finish.

"It's a slang term that describes Naesala," Reyson interrupted. "If you looked it up in the dictionary, Naesala's picture would be next to it."

"What? I'm really not that bad! Sure, I flirt a little, but I'm not always thinking about--"

"Okay, okay. We've been discussing this for several minutes and we haven't accomplished anything!" Nealuchi shook his head. "I am in favor of Nestling's decision, but I do think that we need to impose a few rules."

"Rules?" Naesala glared at his caretaker. "I'm not sixteen!"

"First," Nealuchi began, ignoring Naesala, "I think that Princess Leanne should be allowed to visit Kilvas as often as she wishes, but she can't stay there all the time until some more... permanent plans have been made."

Naesala kept his mouth shut, since he hadn't yet formally proposed to Leanne. _It won't be long, though, of course!_

"I like that," Reyson murmured with a glance at the raven king. "Please continue, Nealuchi."

"Second, Nestling needs to go to King Lorazieh and make sure that everything is okay with him about the arrangement."

"WHAT?! I have to get her father's permission to _court_ her?!" Naesala looked at Leanne helplessly. "That's not fair! Who else has to deal with that?"

"Well, Nestling, you _are_ from different tribes, and I'm not sure how his majesty will like the idea of his only daughter with a crow. You know what I mean. I just think we should make everything formal."

Reyson nodded. "Yes, I agree."

_Reyson's never gonna get laid with that kind of attitude,_ Naesala thought angrily.

"Well, Nestling? What do you think?" Nealuchi asked.

"I guess I have no choice... I still think you're overreacting to the whole thing," he muttered.

"Let's go to my father, then," Reyson announced.

_This could be... interesting,_ Naesala thought gloomily as he left the room with Leanne, Nealuchi, and Reyson.

Meanwhile, Giffca and Caineghis were merely observing the interesting events that were now unfolding.

"Your majesty, has the bird tribe always been like this?" Giffca asked.

"Not that I know of... although I'm still not quite sure what is going on," the red lion answered. "But, I think that everything is finally being solved in this little love story."

"I sure hope so... it hasn't been quiet in Gallia since that crow arrived," muttered Giffca.


	13. Chapter 13: Reyson's Dilemma

_So... I forgot that Lorazieh technically shouldn't be awake right now... so just pretend that he is lol. I should probably finish Radiant Dawn soon so I know what I'm talking about lol. Anyways, this is the second to last chapter already! (Oh noes!) So I hope everyone enjoys this latest installment! :D_

Chapter 13 --Reyson's Dilemma, In Which Lorazieh is Consulted

Reyson led the way to his father's room. Even though King Lorazieh had recovered a little from his illness, he was still very much bedridden. Naesala was still unsure how to approach the king of Serenes.

_I could be all proper and suave, and then he'd think I'm responsible. Or I could use the money factor and tell him that his daughter will be filthy rich now that Nealuchi succeeded in that raid. Maybe that wouldn't work for herons, though... _

The door opened, and Naesala saw Lorazieh lying in bed, reading a book. He seemed surprised about having four laguz randomly walk into his room.

He asked Reyson what was going on, in the old tongue, of course.

Reyson took a deep breath before answering his father. "This will be surprising, but King Naesala of Kilvas wishes to... court Leanne."

Naesala rolled his eyes. _More than court, you fool..._

Lorazieh was indeed shocked. He scanned the raven king over for a long time. Then he spoke with the little bit of the new tongue he had learned.

"Why you want court Leanne?" he asked softly.

_Why do you think?_ Naesala sighed. _Be patient. Be polite. The fate of your future with Leanne rests on this conversation._ He glanced around at Reyson and Nealuchi. "I d-deeply love her, sir." His face turned bright red. _Damn, I didn't just say that out loud..._

Leanne giggled. "Naesala nice, Father. He teaching me how to talk and dance."

Lorazieh nodded.

Reyson decided to speak up again. "Father, Sir Nealuchi and I have agreed that it would be prudent to get your permission before they go into this."

Lorazieh looked at Naesala again. "You get married?"

Naesala blushed, speechless, as did Leanne.

"I take that as maybe." The heron king chuckled. "Reyson, you so strict."

Reyson stared at his father with wide eyes. "What? I'm not strict! I'm worried about Leanne! I don't want her running off with some random man just because he's nice!"

"And good-looking," Naesala added with a grin. "And suave."

"Whatever, Naesala." Reyson glared at him.

"Why you worried?" asked Lorazieh.

"Because he's... well... he's Naesala! You remember what kind of trouble he would get us into when we were little?"

Lorazieh smiled. "Reyson, when you find a wife?"

"I... What? What does that have to do with anything?"

Naesala stepped in. "Your majesty, I'll get started on that right away. I'm sure there's a lovely raven lady waiting at home who would love to marry your son."

"Naesala, shut up! I'm not worried about marriage right now!"

"You're not getting any younger."

Leanne giggled. "Father, what you say? Please?"

The old heron thought for a moment. "I talk to Leanne quick? Lone?"

"Of course, Father." Reyson looked sharply at Naesala and escorted him out of the room with Nealuchi.

"Well, I think that's going to go well," Naesala remarked.

"Yeah, you just think you can win him over because you're witty. Nice going!" Reyson shook his head.

Nealuchi chuckled. "Prince Reyson, I do think you should spend some time looking for a wife. It would make your father happy."

"I told you, I'm not interested."

"Look, Reyson, I'm not letting you turn into the 400-year-old virgin. As soon as Leanne and I get back to Kilvas, we're going to look for the perfect woman for you!" Naesala winked at him.

Reyson rolled his eyes. "I hate you..."

Ranulf was walking by just at that moment, with Lyre trotting behind him. "Hey, what's the party going on out here?"

"Nestling is waiting for King Lorazieh's permission to court Princess Leanne," Nealuchi answered.

"Haha. Sucks for you, Naesala!" Ranulf grinned. "Are we going to have to make sure that you're home by 10 o'clock every night?"

"Seriously, I'm not sixteen! I'm a responsible adult!"

Nealuchi snorted at this comment.

"What? I am! I don't drink _that_ much!" Naesala frowned.

Nealuchi snorted again.

"What have I let my sister get into..." Reyson muttered as he put his head in his hands.

"Ran-Ran! When are we going on that date? You have to keep your promise!" Lyre jumped onto Ranulf's back. "It's supposed to be a full moon tonight! Won't it be just _so_ romantic?"

Ranulf groaned. "Fine, we'll go on a date tonight... but you're not allowed to jump on me like that!"

"But you're just so cute! I like to hug you, Ran-Ran!" Lyre squealed.

Naesala smirked. "'Ran-Ran'? How cute. She's already given you a pet name."

"Shut up, crow."

Suddenly, Leanne burst out of the room with a big grin on her face. She ran up to Naesala and hugged him.

"Father say yes!" she exclaimed.

"Wh-what? Really?" Naesala hugged her back. _I win AGAIN! Try to stop me now, Reyson!_

Leanne let go of him and walked over to her brother. "Reyson, you worry too much. I be fine. Father say so."

"Ugh... I hope so..." Reyson shook his head. "I'll go talk to Father some more." Then he went into the room and shut the door.

"Well, Princess? I suppose you'll be coming back with us for a little while?" Nealuchi asked.

Leanne frowned. "I not... I make promise to King Caineghis to help decorate for next hunting party."

"So? You can skip out on that." Naesala put a hand around her waist. "Which would be more fun?"

Leanne smiled. "I sorry. I want to, but... I keep my promise. But, I come as soon as over!"

"Make sure you do! I'm not sure how long I'll be able to keep my hands off of you," the raven king whispered, just low enough so Nealuchi wouldn't hear. He softly kissed her cheek.

"Oh well. Nestling, tomorrow will mark the last day of our trip. Tomorrow means that it's been two weeks since we came here, remember?"

Naesala stared at his caretaker in surprise. "Already?" _So much has happened... it all went by so fast, I suppose... Time flies when you're having fun._ Then he remembered the assignment he had given to Nealuchi. "Ah, Nealuchi? How is the... project coming along?"

"The ga-- I mean, the 'project' is going along nicely. I think we've found a spot that will work." The old crow grinned.

"Excellent." Naesala turned to Leanne. "I'll have a surprise for you when you come to Kilvas."

"Really? What?" she asked excitedly.

"It's a surprise. I can't tell you until you come and see it, silly."

"Oh..."

"That will give you an incentive to hurry on over," he whispered.

Leanne giggled. "I not wait!"

Reyson came out of his father's room, shaking his head. "I still think it's a bad idea."

"You would think it's a bad idea if your sister married Tibarn, you fool," Naesala muttered. "Get used to it." Then he escorted Leanne down the hall. He wanted to have some alone time with her before they left tomorrow, and the moon was shining bright up in the sky by this point. He thought he could hear Reyson following him, but he didn't care. He had finally gotten his way for once, so it didn't matter what the stuffy heron thought.

He led her out into the courtyard, which was only lit by the stars and the moon. She looked at him with questioning in her eyes.

"Why we out here? It dark," she asked softly.

"It was getting too noisy in there," Naesala replied. "Besides, I won't be able to see you for a while, so I want to have you to myself for a bit until you come to visit."

She giggled. "You so cute." Then she leaned against him and looked out at the stars. "You really take care of me?"

"You're asking me that? Of course I will! I wouldn't have rescued you from the tower back then if I didn't want to take care of you!" Naesala grinned.

They stood like that for a while, until Naesala decided to have his fourth kiss. He ran a hand through her hair and pulled her closer to him.

"I love you," he whispered. Then he kissed her softly.

"None of that! I'm not having any of that! You haven't even been dating for a day!" Reyson ran in and glared at him.

"Oh please, Reyson, this is our fourth kiss," Naesala muttered matter-of-factly. "You're not my mommy."

"But I _am_ her brother! Just because Father doesn't see what you two are doing doesn't mean I won't!"

Leanne giggled. "Reyson, you so silly. Go inside and go to sleep."

Reyson stared at her in shock. "Leanne! I have to make sure that you stay pure before you get married! How do you know that you'll even get married to him? What will happen then? You can hold hands, but that's it! No more kissing! Maybe a hug every now and then, but Naesala, no feeling her up, you hear? Are you even listening to me?"

Naesala had picked Leanne up and flew out of the courtyard, leaving Reyson to stare after them in fear. They soared until they reached the spot where they had been lost during the hunt, only a little more than a week ago.

"Does he ever shut up about that kind of stuff?" he asked when they had finally landed.

Leanne giggled. "He just worried. But he no need to be."

They kissed again, relieved that there was no one watching them this time. Suddenly, they heard a gurgling sound.

"Oh! I miss dinner!" Leanne exclaimed. "We go back and eat!"

"Go back? I've got a tasty snack right here!" Naesala grinned mischievously.

"Silly. You flirt a lot," she told him. "I really hungry."

"Fine, fine. Why don't we continue after dinner?" he asked as he ran his hand down her shoulder.

"Okay. If I not too tired." She giggled again. "It give me more... in-cen-tive? Yes, incentive to visit."

"Ah, yes. We'll have plenty of time then."

She opened her wings and got ready to take off, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her close to him.

"No you don't. I'm carrying you." He lifted her up in his arms.

"I fly good!" she protested.

"I'm much faster, though. Besides, you know you like it," he remarked.

Leanne blushed. "Fine. You so romantic, it funny!"

They soared back to the castle, and Reyson was standing right where they had left him.

"Where did you go? What were you doing? Naesala, if you did anything improper, I'll--"

"Reyson, shut up. We talked. And now we're hungry because we missed dinner. Now, if you'll excuse us..." Naesala smirked and led Leanne into the castle.

_Well, at least I have plenty of blackmail backed up in case he gets too nosy,_ he thought as he heard Reyson shouting after him.


	14. Chapter 14: Epilogue of Sorts

_Sadness... IT'S THE LAST CHAPTER!! But yeah, this was a lot of fun to write! You guys were awesome reviewers. I mean, seriously, over 100 reviews! This has been my most popular fic so far and I want to thank all of you for sticking with it all this time! So now we're up to the end. I hope you like it as much as you liked the rest of it! (endings are not my specialty so I'm a little worried but I think it turned out all right...) So yeah.  
Enjoy! :D_

* * *

Chapter 14 -- Epilogue of Sorts, In Which This is The Last Chapter

Naesala woke up that morning and realized with horror that it was the day he was supposed to leave for Kilvas. However, he was looking forward to building the extravagant garden for Leanne, so he got out of bed earlier than usual (in other words, at the time that everyone else normally got up) and rushed down to the throne room.

Nealuchi was already waiting. He had started to say his good-byes to Lethe, Lyre, Ranulf, and Mordecai.

"Well, this is indeed a sad day for all, as it is the day on which I must leave your presences and return to Kilvas!" Naesala put on a dramatic face.

Lethe, however, muttered to herself, "Thank the goddess..."

"One thing's for sure, it'll be nice and quiet again," Ranulf remarked with a grin.

Reyson and Leanne then entered the room with Giffca and Caineghis. Leanne immediately rushed over to Naesala and hugged him, much to Reyson's displeasure.

"I visit as soon as can!" she cried. "I stay for a month!"

"A week," Reyson corrected sternly.

"Aw, Reyson, you always ruin the fun!" Naesala grinned. "She's staying for a month! Maybe even longer!" And with that, he kissed her lightly on the lips.

"Nestling..." Nealuchi grabbed Naesala by the ponytail and sharply yanked him away. "There are people watching."

"So?"

Leanne's face was bright red, but she was giggling.

"Anyway..." Reyson continued. "Nealuchi, I hope you have a safe flight back."

"Thank you, Prince Reyson! I promise I'll keep Nestling out of trouble."

Naesala groaned. "I'm not a fledgling anymore..."

Caineghis cleared his throat. "My friends from Kilvas, we all have greatly enjoyed having you with us these last two weeks!"

Lethe coughed.

"I hope you have a safe flight back, and may your wings stay strong!"

_He's so cordial,_ thought Naesala. _I'm sure he doesn't actually mean any of that... Well, maybe toward Nealuchi..._

"Thank you for having us," the old crow said. Then he glanced at Naesala to make him say some polite word of thanks.

"Yes, Caineghis. Thank you. I must say I greatly enjoyed my time here." Naesala winked at Leanne. "I hope to come back soon, perhaps when things slow down again."

"Yeah, next time he's bored," Lethe muttered.

"Farewell, my cat friends!" Naesala exclaimed with a dramatic bow. "And Reyson, hopefully Leanne will convince you that I'm a great guy. May your feathers stay clean." Then he turned to Leanne. "I'm looking forward to your visit, Leanne, darling."

Ranulf rolled his eyes. "That's the longest farewell I've ever heard."

The raven king smirked. "My dear cat, don't you remember when we left Crimea after the war? Now _that_ was a long farewell! Honestly, what was Ike thinking when he said good-bye to every single person he came in contact with during the war?"

Lethe sighed. "He has a point there..."

"Anyway," Naesala continued, "I shall take my leave of you all now. Farewell!" With that, he gave another sweeping bow and left the room with Nealuchi.

"He's gone! He's finally gone!" Lethe exclaimed as soon as the door shut.

"Finally, some peace and quiet," Giffca muttered. "I've had such a headache the last two weeks."

Caineghis smiled at them all. "Yes, things will be much quieter again; though, I must say, he did make things interesting around here."

Meanwhile, Naesala was thinking to himself as he and Nealuchi made their way through the halls. _Maybe I should have given her a better farewell kiss... But I'm sure Reyson would have killed me if I did. A hug, maybe? I should have said something romantic, like, 'My sweet, sweet Leanne, I shall miss you every minute you are away!' Damn, that's so cheesy... Good thing I didn't say that--_

"Nestling?"

Naesala popped out of his private reflection period. "Yes, Nealuchi?"

"What kind of flowers do you want in the garden?"

"Like hell I know anything about flowers! Just make them pretty and colorful! How much gold did we get in the raid?"

Nealuchi thought for a moment. "Well, I lost count at about 500,300 gold coins. There was quite a bit of jewelry and silk that will easily sell for more."

"Hm, better save some for Leanne first. She likes green and white. Any other color can be sold." Naesala grinned at the thought of Leanne's face when she would see the pretty dresses she would get from the stolen silk. "What kind of space do we have for the garden?"

"It's somewhat small, not much smaller than the courtyard here in Gallia. But it seems like it will make a quaint little garden." Nealuchi smiled. "When do you plan on asking her to marry you, Nestling?"

Naesala blushed. "None of your business."

"It must be soon, then!" Nealuchi chuckled. "It will be so much fun!"

By this point, the two ravens had reached the outside of the castle.

"Ready to take off, Nestling?"

"I suppose so..." Naesala was about to stretch his wings out when he suddenly heard someone call his name.

"Naesala! Wait!"

The ravens turned to see Leanne running toward them. She was wearing the necklace Naesala had given her; the emerald stone was glinting in the sunlight as it bounced up and down on her chest.

"Leanne? What is it?"

Leanne stopped to catch her breath. "I wanting... to say bye-bye," she panted.

"Oh! Well..." Naesala wasn't sure what to say.

"I... um..." She looked over at Nealuchi, who was watching with amusement.

He chuckled. "I'll leave you two alone for a moment." Then he fluttered behind the corner of the wall.

"Alone, eh?" Naesala grinned. "You're getting to be more like me!"

The heron giggled. "Thank you... for... all..."

"Everything," Naesala corrected. "That's what you wanted to say, right?"

Leanne sighed. "I still lot to learn..."

"Well, at least there's one language we both know that no one else knows, and it doesn't require any words."

"What you mean?" Leanne cocked her head to the side in confusion.

Naesala ran a hand through her hair as he kissed her. "That's what I mean," he whispered.

Leanne leaned her head on his shoulder. "Thank you. I miss you soon."

"I'm going to miss you, too." Then Naesala laughed. "I almost told you this line about missing you earlier, but you would have thought it was too cheesy."

"Cheesy?"

"Ridiculous. Silly. Know what I mean?"

Leanne giggled. "That okay. I like cheesy. What you saying?"

"My sweet, sweet Leanne, I shall miss you every second you are away!"

Leanne laughed. "Cheesy," she remarked.

"I told you."

"But I like. You miss me like I miss you." She smiled and looked deeply into his eyes, trying to memorize them before he went away. "I happy you come. I happy I can tell you I love you."

"I'm glad I came, too! You know..." Naesala smirked. "The whole reason for my visit was to steal your heart."

"You steal it before," she whispered. "Long time... then... ah..."

"Long time ago, you mean?"

"Yes..."

_I could have taken her back to Kilvas ages ago, then!_ Naesala thought. _Oh well. Maybe this way was better after all. These last two weeks were aggravating at times, but... I think the whole trip was worth it. I have Leanne, and Reyson seems to hate me less than he used to."_

Naesala sighed. "Is Reyson really coming along with you?"

"Yes." Leanne frowned. "He not trust me."

"More like he doesn't trust _me_." He smirked. "But I won't do anything _bad_," he added with a wink.

"Like in closet?"

"Now, Leanne, I'm only going to be able to behave as long as _you_ behave..." He kissed her hair and slowly let his hands run down her shoulders to her hips, and maybe even lower--

"Naesala! Get your hands off of there!" Reyson had come out to see what Leanne was up to. "Wait until Father hears about this!"

_Dammit..._ thought Naesala. "Reyson, wait until you find a woman. Then you'll realize what a struggle my hormones are going through right now."

"Hormones?" Leanne wrinkled her nose. "What that?"

Naesala suddenly grinned. "They're these little things inside me that make me want to--"

"NAESALA!!"

Reyson rushed over to him and smacked him in the face. Only it had no effect on Naesala because Reyson's not very strong.

"You'll have to work harder than that if you want to keep me off her completely!" Naesala remarked with a smirk.

"Stupid horny crow..." Reyson muttered, rubbing his hand from the smack that had hurt him more than it hurt its target. "Okay, Leanne, let's go. We don't want to detain them any longer from their duties."

He started to pull Leanne away, but she lightly shook off his grasp and threw her arms around Naesala. Her kiss was so full of passion that it completely threw Naesala off guard. He began to stumble backward but quickly caught his balance. Reyson could only look on helplessly in shock.

Finally, Leanne let go and looked into Naesala's eyes. "Bye-bye..." she whispered. Then she bounded over to her brother as though nothing had happened.

"Good-bye, Leanne, my darling!" Naesala called.

By this point Nealuchi had come back out and was ready to take off. The two ravens soared into the air after one last wave to the heron siblings.

_Damn, she's good,_ Naesala thought dreamily as they flew along. _Did I teach her that?_

"Ah, Nestling?"

"Yes, Nealuchi?"

Nealuchi reached out his hand and smacked Naesala on the back of the head. "That's from Prince Reyson."

"Ugh... You know I was just saying that stuff to make him mad!"

Nealuchi chuckled. "You two will make great brothers-in-law."

As Kilvas came into view, Naesala began to realize how good it was to be home. No more fleas, no more loud cats... Just the waves and numerous unsuspecting merchant ships to steal from.

"Nealuchi! As soon as we land, prepare the garden! We're gonna get this place in top shape for when Leanne comes!"

"Yes, Nestling. Would you like me to prepare some dresses as well?"

"Go for it. I know absolutely nothing about dresses." Naesala landed and went to his room to update his inventory notes. Or, he was pretending to update his inventory notes. In reality he was writing a letter to his beloved Leanne, dreaming up of ways to spend time with her when she would come to visit.

Then he sat and stared out his window in the direction of Gallia, dreaming of private moments with Leanne, pissing off Reyson, weddings, and things to come.

* * *

_The End!_

_A/N: Yeah, as you can see, I kinda left it open for a sequel. Because there's going to be a sequel. :D_

_Thanks again for reading! Until next time, this is crazygunbladergirl saying "Ciao!"_


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